


I Serve (My Prince, My King)

by TorMist



Series: My Prince, My King [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Slavery, Anal Sex, Angst, BAMF Loki (Marvel), BDSM, Bottom Loki (Marvel), Dark Thor (Marvel), Enemies to Friends, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Eventual Thor Whump, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Intense, Jotunn Loki (Marvel), King Thor (Marvel), Laufey (Marvel)'s A+ Parenting, Light BDSM, Loki Whump, Loki and Thor Are Not Related, Loki is not blue!, M/M, Magical Bond, Oral Sex, Porn with Feelings, Rape, Sexual Slavery, Slave Loki, Slave Loki (Marvel), Smut, Suicidal Thoughts, Thor AU, Thorki - Freeform, Thunderfrost - Freeform, Top Thor (Marvel), Topping from the Bottom, Torture, warprize loki
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-01
Updated: 2020-02-24
Packaged: 2020-12-09 04:28:08
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 35
Words: 100,039
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20988842
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TorMist/pseuds/TorMist
Summary: In an AU Jotunheim where Loki is raised as the not-quite-hidden prince of his realm, King Thor of Asgard and his invading Einherjar are waging the final days of war against Laufey. Thor knows that the key to subjugating the Frost Giants for once and for all is to capture and conquer their sorcerer, a mysterious figure who looks Aesir but is as hard to pin down as a handful of smoke. Thor understands less than he thinks the cost to himself of engaging in such dishonourable warfare, and certainly does not understand the price that Loki must pay for serving the king.





	1. Near Strike

Walking green-eyed and pale-skinned through the Asgardian camp in stolen green and gold, Loki passed the Thunderer's open tent and caught the princeling-king's eye as he glanced up from a table with papers on it, maps most likely. They looked old from what Loki could see. Asgard had not kept abreast of events in Jotunheim since its defeat at her hands a millennium past. Why would she? With the Casket of Winters safely stored in the weapons vault of Asgard, she had no reason to concern herself with her enemy.

So, thought Loki, this was his target, in the flesh. Thor and he were of an age, he knew, one of the few things Loki knew about him. Thor almost shone in the muted afternoon light, his blond hair held back in braids, his golden skin glowing with vitality, his muscles moving lazily but powerfully, and the blue of those eyes surprisingly clear and insightful.

Loki gave the informal salute that he had seen the Asgardian troops give to their superior officers in the camp, and Thor returned it, with a brief appraisal of Loki that Loki thought might have been more than a general looking over his soldier. Was it a flicker of interest? Could Loki use that?

Probably not, though he knew little of the Thunderer. There were rumours that the ill-discipline of his youth had been eroded somewhat by responsibility and experience. The young prince had spent some time being shaped on Midgard, becoming more malleable and less brittle, stronger and better-forged. He was newly succeeded to the throne of Asgard after returning from Midgard to find Odin in his slumber.

Loki smiled at the thought of seducing the new Asgardian 'king'; a fine challenge, and no hardship win or lose. Unfortunately, the new war between their peoples had already left the Jotunn in too desperate a plight to allow Loki to play a long game here. Under cover of darkness, he intended tonight to end the war by cutting it off at the source. Loki intended to bring death to the warmongering Asgardian invader, Thor Odinson, King of Asgard.

Later, as he approached the tent with knives drawn and seidr humming, Loki had sudden cause to regret those corn-blue eyes and deceptively lazy muscles as the Thunderer came bursting out of his tent roaring in anger and flinging Mjolnir in Loki's direction. Only for his own lightning fast reflexes, Loki might have been crushed immediately. Creating multiple copies of himself, he laughed mockingly at the furious princeling and sent his mirror selves off in every direction while wrapping himself in silence and shadows.

Mjolnir cut a swathe through his other selves, which was more than a little disconcerting, and as she returned to Thor's hand, Loki could not help noticing how beautiful the hammer was, both in ironcraft and in seidr though so different from his own. Loki felt the storm gather around Mjolnir and her wielder. It seemed the Thunderer depended on her to focus his elemental powers. That could be useful, he knew.

He wondered if now would be a good time to exit... how had Thor known he was there? An Asgardian magic-wielder whom he had not noticed approached Thor as he spun the hammer, seeking to loose her again, and muttered something to Thor that Loki could not make out. To his annoyance, Loki saw her eyes turn towards the place where he stood aside, hidden. Thor whiplashed his head around towards him too and Loki had felt a moment of real fear as the terrible intensity of Thor's anger swept over him. Thor could surely not see him but he knew that Loki was there.

Loki had no doubt that if he went head-to-head in battle with Thor at that moment, it would be a toss of the dice which one of them ended it dead, but it would be foolish to fight the Thunderer in the middle of the Asgardian camp alone and surrounded by enemies. Deciding that discretion was the better part of valour, Loki pulled the strands of seidr tighter around himself and skywalked away a split second before Mjolnir battered him.

At least the Asgardians did not appear to have a sorcerer to match him. He would have had to find a way to sidestep them, blind them or destroy them. He supposed it did not matter either way, they would be on the alert now and another assassination attempt in their camp would be futile. His chance to bring the war to a quick and early end had come to nothing, his quest a failure. Loki's father would be disappointed.

How strange it was to think Loki would probably die here in hopeless defence of his home, a home that had never been able to embrace or comfort him. His father was gambling all, and while Loki approved of the impulse, he wondered now if the gamble ever had any chance of paying off. He could almost smell the Aesir on the wind, their heat and magic carried on the harsh eddies of a land alien to them, a land that tried to shake them off. Laufey-King was silent in his capital, but Loki knew he plotted.

_I serve my King_. Loki had dedicated himself to his duty as his father's son, as his king's subject and once prince of this land. He had had to sacrifice much to become the man he was today, whoever that was.

No. Loki knew exactly who he was, when all the layers of Jotunn, of royal birth, of trickster, of seidrweaver, of shapechanger, of warrior were peeled away. He was Prince Loptr of Jotunheim, Loki of the sky, of fire, of light, of lies, of air, of mischief, of nets and boundaries and edges. But at the core he was Loki, only himself.


	2. Near Strike

The battle was done. Loki suspected his war was done too. The Thunderer stood over him, the grim cast of his features illuminated by flashes of lightning that condensed in the air around them both. Loki wondered what expression he wore on his own face. He hoped it was not the awe and fear that he felt. Perhaps it was pain, for the pain was surely more raw than the fear. He gathered what he could of his seidr around him to heal what was most damaged. His screaming nerves were somewhat calmed, the worst of the burns soothed, and the ringing left his ears. The sounds of the final skirmishes rose again around him, along with a low, unending rumble of thunder.

Muscles spasmed as he slowly, too slowly reached for his daggers, realising that Thor was also moving, and that he more than had the advantage of Loki. As if moving through jelly, Thor raised Mjolnir to bring her down on Loki's chest. Loki winced and braced himself for the inevitable and final blow, and even that seemed strangely slow. Only as Mjolnir settled firmly on him did he see that the Thunderer had not struck violently, but had simply placed the hammer so to pin Loki on the ground. Loki's own hand had not closed yet on his dagger hilt.

Realising that his perceptions were utterly unreliable due to shock and exhaustion, Loki stared at the hammer sitting almost gently on his chest. She truly was beautiful. Thor kicked Loki's hand away from his blades and grabbed his forearm. Loki instinctively attempted to bite, teeth his last available weapon. He tasted the metallic tang of blood as he felt the rumble of a laugh from the large looming figure. Tilting his head upwards to try to clear the darkness that was beginning to cloud his vision, he looked flush in the face of the god of thunder, and Loki could not help but think regretfully how even Mjolnir's beauty paled in comparison to that of her magnificent wielder.

Something tightened around both wrists as he fell into darkness.


	3. Calm

Waking he knew not how much later, Loki could not guess at first where he was. It was bright, and warm too, warmer than the dwellings he had stayed in since the beginning of this war. Ah, the Asgardian camp then, surely. He could hear the murmur of conversation nearby. Loki's senses seemed muted, though, and he felt a flash of worry that perhaps he had not healed himself as much as he had thought before he passed out.

Opening his eyes in a squint, he could see that he was on a clean, slightly raised pallet in a large enough tent. There was a hammer beside the bed, a replica of Mjolnir. Strange. Stretching slightly to test his body's ability to feel and to move, he realised jerkily he could not feel the weaves of fate. He stepped on the seed of panic which was about to bloom and centred himself. Knowing that if there were guards in the tent, he would be signalling to them that he was conscious, he decided anyway to attempt to sit as a way to ground himself physically. He reached out to touch seidr, scrabbled really, but felt nothing.

How could there be nothing? He needed to wake up properly. Open his metaphorical eyes. Oof. Maybe start with his physical ones.

He reached a full sit, and looked blearily around the room. There were a handful of figures standing in a circle by a desk near the exit of the tent, obviously in the middle of a conversation that his movement had interrupted. One looked like the warrior with the double-bladed staff whom he had evaded only days before. Lady Sif. Another was most certainly Thor, head and shoulders above the rest.

The world seemed strangely black and white, or misshapen, but Loki didn't think that there was anything wrong as such with his eyes. One of his bootless ankles was chained to the middle post of the tent -like a dog! and both his wrists were cuffed in front of him, a thinner chain connecting them. Better than being trussed up like a game bird for feast, he supposed. He didn't think that the chains were the worst of his situation, however. What was _wrong_? Something was very wrong. He looked around the tent again and his eyes fell on the Mjolnir replica.

He decided to look away and search for a solution to this mystery elsewhere but his eyes dragged themselves back to the hammer. What. What was it about the hammer? Who would make such a thing? Suddenly, he had clarity. It... was not a replica. He was looking at Mjolnir. It was she. But he had not recognised her at first because he could not truly see. He was only perceiving with his eyes instead of perceiving with all of his senses. His magical senses were blinded. He was cut off from seidr.

He heard a strangled cry and realised it had come from himself. Thor had detached himself from the group and approached him with palms raised, speaking in a low, calm voice. "Do not distress yourself. You will not be injured here unless you give cause." Loki frowned and threw his legs over the side of the pallet, attempting to stand without actually scrambling to his feet. Whatever came next he would face it standing, toe to toe with his enemy. Loki knew without looking that the runic cuffs he had seen on Lady Sif's belt were what was snug around his wrists.

His connection to Yggdrasil had not been severed. Surely not that. He was trapped by the cuffs, that was all. Cuffs could be removed, runes could be altered, erased. He unfolded upwards, limbs stiff and sore, but once standing, his planted feet held him steady as he considered how to respond to Thor.

Thor could want several things of him. A trophy, most likely, or a hostage, a bargaining piece. Loki had wondered exactly which for some time as it had become clear that he was being almost courted by the Asgardian on the battlefield. A violent courtship to be sure, and a painful and frustrating one for both of them as they had ducked and dodged around each other's strikes, but not dissimilar to a dance all the same. Did Thor dance?

Probably with a bluff grace, Loki thought, like the rest of his movements. He wasn't sure how much Thor knew of him, did he even know Loki's name? He had never heard his name spoken on the battlefield, only the curse of 'sorcerer!'.

Did Thor realise he had captured the the third prince of Jotunheim, their shadow prince? The unspoken-of prince, to be sure, but he had never been officially disinherited and his father acknowledged him in his personal circle, if never in matters of state. Loki found himself genuinely curious about how his father might respond if Thor thought to use him as a bargaining chip.

Thor was awaiting Loki's own response, and seemed to be treating him as one would a skittish horse. Loki did not allow himself a slight smile. He was not afraid, exactly. The Asgardian could have finished Loki off on the battlefield, and might still run him through on a whim, and discard Loki's corpse outside the camp like so much detritus, but he had taken enough care to bring Loki back to his own tent. Loki obviously had _some_ value as a prisoner, and this was to Loki's advantage. Of course it was. He quelled a thought he did not think he could endure right then...

Certainly, he could bear captivity and torture if he needed to, even at the hands of this brute, for as long as it took for him to find a way to loose the cuffs. Loki would play the entertainingly defiant captive if that is what was best suited; he could acquiesce slowly but satisfyingly to Thor's supposed mastery of him.

Loki knew how to play such games, giving Thor enough of the appearance of a fight to keep him interested and reassured that he had the measure of Loki. And while chained and apparently angrily resigning himself to his fate, Loki could find a way to remove the damnable cuffs, or at least escape to a place of safety where he could figure out his next step. That place of safety would not be Jotunheim, he thought sadly. No safety here anymore.

His impulse to smile faded as he allowed the thought that he had just quelled to rise, and he considered the worst fate that might await him here. Loki had suspicions that Thor's violent battlefield courtship of him was because Thor wished to turn Loki's battle-magic against Jotunheim.

It was the only reason Loki could possibly conceive for Thor's zealous pursuit of him, and his careful handling of Loki here in Thor's own tent. In his most private moments where he fully acknowledged the horrors that this war was inflicting on his soul and heart, Loki absolutely and purely feared that the Thunderer had found the way to bend seidr users to his will.

It was old magic and crude, but effective according to the stories. Laufey knew these stories and had warned Loki of what might happen if he was captured. Loki, in his endless, dangerous curiousity had looked for more knowledge on this and right now in this moment he for once regretted the knowing of something.

It could not be though. The Thunderer was too blunt for such schemes. Surely he merely wanted Loki as a war prize, something to parade before his cheering subjects as he triumphantly rode at the head of his conquering army over the Bifrost into his capital. With Loki out of the war, at least for now and maybe for the duration to be sure, that could be very soon.

Thor lowered his hands, realising that Loki was not going to respond. He looked wary. Loki resisted the urge to say 'boo!'. He saw the others by the exit file out, a few glancing back at Thor and Loki facing each other by the bed, and he heard a few whispers that sounded dark and tense, followed by a chuckle.

The last to leave pulled the door flap closed behind them, and the tent suddenly seemed much smaller to Loki with just Thor in it.


	4. The Storm in Earnest

Loki faced the King of Asgard in earnest, without his magic, without even a knife. His only weapons were his body, which was chained, and his words, which were not.

Thor stood near enough to him that they could have been having a cordial conversation. He looked Loki over, seeming to check that his ankle chain and cuffs were holding fast, and asked in a friendly enough tone, "What is your name?"

Loki knew that lengthy and brutal interrogations often started with simple questions to which the captor already knew the answer but that the captive could answer easily at little obvious cost to themselves.

He saw no advantage to lying so he answered casually "Loki. And yours?" He braced for a blow, but none came. 

Thor grinned at him instead, a sunny smile that seemed genuine. "Loki. I have been told by your captured comrades that your name is as changeable and as quicksilver as you are on the battlefield. Some even said you have no name, or too many. I shall call you Loki if that is what you wish. You may call me whatever you wish for now, although 'your majesty' would be most appropriate."

Loki resisted rolling his eyes at this test. The Thunderer was not subtle. "'Your majesty?'" Loki rolled the words around his mouth as if tasting them. He put enough bite into it to earn another sunny smile. "No. You are no king of mine, Prince Thor."

Thor did not seem bothered by the lack of recognition of his true title. "No king of yours," he acknowledged. "But I am your captor, and soon to be your master." Loki saw a curious expression in Thor's blue eyes now, searching and perhaps a little pitying.

Affecting nonchalance, Loki did not respond but the smallhairs on the back of his head and arms rose as Thor reached out and touched the cuffs encircling Loki's wrists. He wondered if the cuffs had been soldered on. He wondered if Thor himself had the raw strength to tear them off. He wondered anything except at the white hot feeling that had suddenly started to blossom where he felt Thor's fingertips touch his hand.

"Loki. I will use you as a tool to end this war. I treat my tools well and prefer not to break them as long as they are fit for purpose and as long as the end is worth less than the tool itself. So mark this, I will break you if I must, but I prefer to not. I tell you this out of ...kindness I suppose. The only kindness I can show you while we are enemies and I your master. You may retain your sense of self while you serve me, unless it proves too troublesome for me or if it must be broken by me in pursuit of a larger prize."

So. The Thunderer had come right to the heart of the matter. Loki took a deep breath. Not a gasp. No. He would hold to his dignity. Thor's words made clear that Loki could no longer pretend to himself that his fate here was something he could shape. His only, futile, hope to avoid a horrific fate was to provoke the Thunderer into killing him.

He tried to calculate to what extent Thor would physically cripple him if Loki did so. As far as he had to in order to force Loki to comply, he was sure. And no doubt Loki would be bound to serve anyway, afterward; he did not need to be fully physically able to summon seidr. He took another, true, deep breath and made his choice.

No surrender to the invader. He would defend his own autonomy to the very extent that he was able, whatever the consequences. Distantly, he wondered how his father would use this turn of events to his advantage, for Laufey-king surely had plans for this eventuality. He had told Loki as much.

Thor was still talking. "You must know that your seidr is bound, though I swear by looking at you that you face me as if we were still equal in..."

Thor cut off with grunt as Loki, snake-fast, drew back his head and rammed it into the Thunderer's face as hard as he could.

Thor, damn his eyes, reacted just fast enough that Loki missed his nose and Loki's forehead instead crashed into his cheek. _Well, he'll wear a black eye for this at the very least. I'll be lucky if I end up wearing only the same in retaliation_.

Loki attempted to grab Thor's left wrist in his cuffed hands to flip him and lashed out with his foot but the chain caught him short. Thor recovered himself enough to instead catch both of Loki's wrists and pull him off balance.

As Loki panted and struggled to stay on his feet, Thor pulled him closer, grabbed the back of his head and... yes, to Loki's utter shock, he _kissed_ Loki. The intrusion in his mouth was so unexpected that Loki stopped struggling for a moment. As quickly as it had invaded, Thor's tongue slid back out and Loki realised that the only reason he was on his feet at all was that Thor held him in place. That instant, Thor threw him backwards on the pallet, and followed.

Loki raised his legs to kick Thor in the chest and force him away, only for Thor to grab the chain attached to Loki's leg and yank, pulling Loki diagonally and grabbing him by the shoulder. He easily flipped Loki on his stomach and straddled him as Loki ate a mouthful of wool blanket.

Loki was _furious_ at how easily the Thunderer had overpowered him. No matter that Thor was physically the stronger, seemed relatively uninjured, and was _not fucking chained_, Loki should have been able to outsmart him, misdirect him if only for a few moments. Instead it was Loki who had been quickly and utterly subverted.

He was well and truly caught now, having failed to induce the Thunderer to lose control and outright kill him. It looked to be that his fate was to be alive and enslaved, but whole, at least. Loki shuddered, but continued to struggle. He had no leverage, none.

"Well, you made my task a little easier and a little less unpleasant by biting my arm when I captured you, sorcerer," Thor grumbled as he pulled Loki's arms again over his head and pinned them with one hand. "The magic of essences is a primitive one and distasteful. I truly did not relish the thought of forcing you to imbibe my blood but you did so voluntarily."

Loki found himself utterly stunned by these words, and ceased resisting the unstoppable force that was Thor for a moment.

So it was true, the Thunderer had discovered how to bind the will of a seidr-user to his service. This was really happening. He struggled to absorb it, to accept it, because if he allowed shock and horror and revulsion and _fear_ to dictate his handling of this, then he was helpless.

_Deal with the world as you find it, not as you wish it to be_, a memory of his father's voice rose through the white noise that threatened to overwhelm him. This was going to happen. There was nothing he could do to prevent it.

He was going to be raped by the Thunderer. Not only would he have to bear violation and pain, after taking in Thor's essences, Loki would bound by ancient magics to Thor's will. Blood, spit and seed.

He had already ingested Thor's blood and spit, and after Thor came in him, he would be too tightly bound to break free even if he was allowed again access to his seidr. He had known it the moment Thor had forced his tongue into Loki's mouth, known Thor's intentions and Loki's unavoidable fate, but curse his weaknesses, he had pushed the thought away in the hopes that Thor was simply asserting his dominance over his prisoner.

He had to face this with clear sight. With focus. He felt Thor reach for Mjolnir and place her on Loki's wrists. He grunted at the weight, which was not painfully heavy but utterly immovable. He reflexively tried to shift Thor off his hips but the man was just as immovable.

The leg chain was taut at his ankle and he felt Thor roughly pull his leather breeches down from his waist and place a large warm hand on his buttock. Thor paused, and then moved his hand to the small of Loki's back where his tunic had ridden up.

"You oaf!" Loki spat. "You are tangling with magics that are no longer understood, and you are tangling with _me_. This will not end as you think, Thunderer!"

Thor ignored him, and Loki felt him stroke his back, not unpleasantly. "You are scarred here," he said wonderingly. He pushed the tunic further up Loki's back as his fingers traced a jagged line. "A burn, like a lightning bolt."

"I accept your apology," Loki gritted. "But really, it's nothing. The least of my worries."

Thor fell silent for a moment, and then swept his hand over Loki's back.

"I will hurt you as little as you allow." He sounded regretful.

"Pain is not the issue," said Loki. "Nor even always unwelcome. You spoke of kindness. If you want to be kind, kill me now. Or have your way with me if you wish, and then kill me."

Thor made a noise and stilled his hand for a moment. He resumed his stroking of Loki's back, maddeningly soft but with strength, and in different circumstances Loki would have enjoyed the touch, leaned into it, demanded more strength and less softness as the touch progressed.

Appearing to come to a decision, Thor knelt one knee on Loki's lower back and reached for something out of Loki's field of vision. Loki saw the glint of a knife and to his surprise managed to tense even more. He did not truly want to die. The rip of a blade merely cutting leather was a relief, despite everything.

His torn tunic was pulled roughly from him, followed by his breeches, now only sliced rags coloured blue and red for Jotunheim. Thor ran his hands over as much of Loki's naked body as he could with Loki pressed belly-down on the bed, caught between Mjolnir weighting his wrists and Thor's knee on the small of his back.

So Thor had decided to inspect the full buffet on offer, had he? Settling in for a night of entertainment perhaps. Loki could cope with the violation, he could, but the humiliation...that would burn.


	5. The Road to Hel

The scar on Loki's back was a wild thing, a vivid and tangible reﬂection of Thor's power. Thor felt a rush of pleasure at having marked his fallen enemy's pale skin so deﬁnitively. There were none who would see it and not know who had placed it there.

Thor bent and ran his tongue up it from the base at the small of the sorcerer's back to his left shoulder, where he gently bit down.

The sorcerer shivered and Thor felt the skin beneath him goosepimple. The scar did not appear to be painful to Loki and indeed had the appearance of being an old, long-healed hurt, but Thor knew that this scar was the mark of the lightning strike that had felled the sorcerer in what was surely had been their ﬁnal battle.

And now, he was so close to completing the ritual to bind the sorcerer to him. Thor had not seen the final part of the ritual as a sexual act at all. He had intended it to be a perfunctory and joyless thing, a necessary performance of a biological function giving he himself minimal pleasure and cause his...partner...minimum discomfort.

But the man's recalcitrance, his refusal to yield, to acknowledge Thor's attempts at decency in these circumstances where none was due of him was beginning to anger Thor.

He thought now to teach his soon-to-be-slave an early lesson on his new role. Thor would soon be the Jotunn's master, and his slave needed to learn that Thor could deliver pleasure or pain, or both, at a whim.

Besides, Thor deserved an indulgence for his great victory in finally subduing this elusive and destructive monster, a pleasure taken in the throes of a combat won.

Monster he may be, but the sorcerer was quite beautiful really, well made and shaped by the physical demands of war, lean and strong. Thor stroked his shoulders, back and thighs with both hands to enjoy the sensuality of it and to relax Loki if he was open to it. He reached around to stroke the chest and ﬂat planes of the sorcerer's stomach.

Thor was suddenly brought back to himself as Loki shivered again, and he withdrew his hand. Was that revulsion? It could hardly be anticipation.

This was no post-battle celebration for either of them, no comfort or pleasure in the arms of a willing comrade, desperate to celebrate their survival in the most fundamental way. This was rape. Thor almost changed his mind again.

Was it necessary to go through with this? Would it not be enough that the seidrmaster be simply cut off from his magics? Thor might be able to ransom him handsomely in the capital after the war was done, he must surely be of value to someone with inﬂuence.

Hmm. Not Thor's concern of course. He was just distracting himself. Trying to delay the inevitable. Trying to avoid thinking about how much he was beginning to want to do this dishonorable thing to a man who seemed brave and honorable in battle despite his race.

As if Loki could hear his train of thought, the sorcerer shifted under him slightly so he could turn his head to the side and speak clearly. "What are you waiting for, _my prince_? Get it over with."

Loki carefully looked at the possibilities, and came to realise that he had no choice but to accept this, all of this. Loki could beg, which would likely provoke stomach-turning compassion from the Thunderer, judging from his speech on 'kindness' moments ago, but change nothing.

Loki did not intend to give the King of Asgard an opportunity to reassure himself of his magnanimity in this. No. He could try to reason, or to bargain, or ask for mercy and death again, which would only result in the same. _Ugh_. No.

He could fight with no hope of winning, and be enslaved anyway as he squirmed and mewled and fruitlessly, foolishly and fearfully resisted the inevitable while speared on Thor's cock. No no. It's what he _wanted_ to do, so much, so badly, but he had better control of himself than that.

Fine. He would face it as proudly and peaceably as he could. He would have slavery, ha, _thrust_ upon him with as much grace as he could manage. Since he had no choice, he would accept defeat.

In the face of the larger problem of enslavement, a mere rape seemed far easier to get his head around. His focus returned to the physical.

Thor had obviously allowed the excitement of having physically dominated and marked Loki to let loose his sexual appetites and was no longer pretending to himself to be going through the motions simply to secure Loki's soul.

Loki had ignored the feeling of Thor's warm mouth on his back as best he could, but his fingers and toes still curled at the sensation. Loki could not help his body's reaction, though he was surprised by the intensity of it as the purely erotic feel of Thor's teeth clamping down gently on his neck and shoulder sent hot sensuous signals straight to his cock.

Now the Thunderer's hands were on his back. Thor was palming Loki's shoulders and back with both of his large warm strong hands, and one moved to his chest and stomach, then down to his thighs, feeding Thor's desire. Loki could feel Thor's cock hardening against him.

It was pleasant, in the moments Loki could focus on the physical beyond the ﬂuttering fear that imminently he would be roughly opened by those strong ﬁngers and even more roughly fucked.

Loki had a very strong appreciation of the role of pain in the pursuit of pleasure but without consent, without respect, pain was a base and ugly thing to have to accept. Especially if accompanied by violation.

He sighed quietly. Oh, perhaps he was relaxing. He supposed Thor might want to ease his way into Loki's body, take his pleasure in a leisurely fashion rather than the quick rough fuck that Loki had envisioned.

Well, the worst is about to happen, he thought calmly. And the worst wasn't even going to be having the Thunderer's cock up his ass. He bit down a laugh as he felt the self-same cock, large and hot, press against his thigh. His own cock stirred in interest. _Traitor_, he thought bitterly, and shivered.

Thor had paused in his exploration of Loki's body. The hell with it, Loki thought. Let's get on with this.

Tired of being completely passive in his own ruination, he turned his head to the King of Asgard and said "What are you waiting for, _my prince_? Get it over with."

The Thunderer growled at Loki's taunt, reached again for something out of Loki's line of vision, and Loki felt oil pool in the small of his back. This time Thor ran just a finger thoughtfully from Loki's hairline down to where the oil, cool and slick, warmed.

Loki wasn't sure why the gentle touch repulsed him this time but he felt his whole body shudder, and nausea rose. Perhaps it was the intimacy of the gesture, so incredibly violating in the circumstances. It was fine, it was going to be fine, he had endured rougher touches than this, willingly and unwillingly, all would be fine.

He felt Thor's hand cup the warmed oil gathered in the hollow of his lower back and gently push it so it crested over his buttocks and ran down the crack in between, pooling between his legs and sending irritatingly sensuous signals into his groin.

Thor gave some slack on the leg chain and Loki was pulled up by the hips so his ass tilted in a more accessible angle. He gritted his teeth and did not kick out.

A large finger started to circle his hole, and he felt Thor's cock, still pressing against Loki's thigh, twitch. Annoyingly, his own twitched in response.

Thor fisted his other oiled hand around Loki's cock and gave a gratified grunt at what he found there. He did not taunt Loki for being clearly responsive to Thor's touch, for which Loki had enough grace to be grateful.

So what, anyway, if the King of Asgard got him a little excited by overpowering him, tying him up and forcing himself upon Loki. Loki had been thus aroused by far lesser men.

Norns, that was true. He could feel the sheer thickness of Thor's muscled thighs behind him, the heat of his groin, the hard planes of his stomach, the strong grip on his cock, the finger tapping at his entrance...shut up you fool, this is not sex play, he's about to fuck you hard and then cheerfully destroy your true self.

Not a game, a competition. The prize is your soul, and you haven't a hope of winning.

Thor began to work Loki's cock in earnest, a little clumsy at first but not unwelcome, and soon had Loki hard and panting and barely thinking of the finger at his hole as other than making a pleasurable counterpoint to his throbbing cock. "Deep breath," said Thor and to his own disgust, Loki obeyed.

As he exhaled, Thor pumped Loki's cock and slid his finger halfway into Loki's ass. Loki hissed, more for effect than anything, as a warning to be gentle that he hoped would be heeded. Thor's hand left his cock and slapped his left buttock in response.

To Loki's disappointment, Thor's hand did not return to his cock, but Thor continued to work his finger in and out of him; he was not ungentle. Loki soon relaxed into it and a second finger joined the first. More oil, another finger, uncomfortable but bearable and soon to be pleasurable.

Thor's hand returned to Loki's cock. Loki wasn't usually one for rushing things but the dread was beginning to overtake him again. "Alright," he panted. "Enough. You've made your point, I'm not being left bloodied and used. Finish this. Do your worst."

He could feel Thor's eyes on him, intense, but he refused to turn his head enough to meet his gaze. He tried to lean into the feeling of arousal as Thor shifted over him again, large and dangerous, and he gasped when Thor's hand splayed beside his shoulder so Thor could brace himself.

He had a brief moment of regret that he had not kept himself aloof from the Thunderer's ministrations, hadn't made Thor really work for the balm he craved for his conscience, but what the Hel, if his last choice as a free man was to get a good fucking from his heartsworn enemy, it was fitting enough.

He took another deep breath, knowing that when he started to exhale, that would be the last time he did anything that was not at the grace of his master. Magical binding would enslave him to Thor once Thor came in him and completed the ritual. True enslavement, the loss of will. It would probably happen almost immediately as he was penetrated; he was sure he could feel Thor's precum mingling with the oil he had used to ease his way.

Blood, saliva, seed, the trifecta of essential fluids that, along with an ensorcelled runic item, bound a seidrmaster to another's will. Loki would be forced to acknowledge his rapist as his master, and be unable to disobey him. If Thor told him to be grateful to his master for binding Loki to him, Loki would lick his hand like a faithful hound and believe himself blessed for the kindness.

Kindness! The Asgardians knew nothing of it that Loki had seen.

He let the breath go slowly, and closed his eyes, and felt the head of the Thunderer's cock push gently against his opening. He had not even had an opportunity to look at what was about to enter him. He would like to have seen Thor's cock once, before the binding began to bend his thoughts. Loki irritably acknowledged that it was probably as magnificent as the rest of him.

_Ugh_. The sharp pain of the breach sent quivers radiating from his intimacy, not entirely unpleasantly, and a dull ache began to grow in his bowels.

Thor paused, thankfully, in a shallow thrust to give the ring of muscles a moment to adjust and Loki hoped it would be enough to avoid cramp. Thor was unsurprisingly big. Loki knew this sensation though, it felt good though quite sore, and could become something exquisite if handled expertly. Thor withdrew almost fully and with another reasonably gentle thrust, pushed further in, and almost bottomed out judging by the heat on Loki's flanks.

Out of nowhere, Loki suddenly felt utterly panicked, for no reason he could fathom. What...? Why? He had made his peace with this, he had! He had allowed Thor to prepare him, he had been gentle with himself and allowed himself to co-operate...

As Thor withdrew a second time in preparation for thrusting one final time before beginning to fuck him in earnest, Loki was overwhelmed by a wave of terror, and he bit down on his lip to stop himself from wailing. He would not disgrace himself in front of his land's despoiler, he would not!

Thor congratulated himself on guiding Loki to a relatively painless coupling; maybe even some mutual satisfaction might be won from it, the sorcerer seemed to have come to some accommodation with his fate. Thor was relaxing into the task when he suddenly felt Loki go as taut as a drawn bow.

The man appeared to be trying not to scream.

"Loki, calm yourself!" Thor snapped. He withdrew his cock as gently as he could.

The sorcerer immediately relaxed, though he shuddered and panted like he had seen the shades of Hel beckon to him.

"It's almost over," said Thor, more reassuringly.

Loki nodded again and his breathing began to slow. He looked wrung out. Thor wondered for a moment if it was a trick, but decided if it was, the sorcerer would not get far with the cuffs.

He removed Mjolnir which was keeping Loki's hands pinned to the bed, and made to turn Loki around to face him. He thought perhaps it would be less degrading to fuck the sorcerer face to face, as lovers or friends might.

"Come, I would have you on your back."

"NO!"

Thor almost recoiled with the force of Loki's response.

"You will not make me look you in the face while you fuck me!"

Loki was panting and, braced up on his elbows, still facing down on the bed with his back to Thor.

"Please, for pity's sake, finish, I cannot bear it."

Thor found himself utterly on the back foot, with no idea what to do, or even what to think or feel.

"Come now, King of Asgard," Loki sneered, seeing his hesitation. "Fuck me. Finish it. I know you want to master me as much as you want to master this land, and cast us aside once you're done. I will _not_ indulge you by waiting until you work up your nerve again."

Looking over his shoulder, he knelt up further so his ass was at an easy angle to access. He looked every image of the teasing pleasure worker except for the contempt plain on his face.

Thor lost his patience. He had done everything he could to make this easy. If Loki could not accept kindness then he would have to take Thor as raw and elemental as he was. Thor approached Loki from behind and, grabbing his hips roughly, positioned his cock and slammed in as hard as he could.

The oil and preparation surely eased the way yet, but he heard a gasp of pain and saw Loki drop his head down to lean on his forearms as Thor bottomed out inside him. Thor immediately set a punishing pace, not allowing himself to regret the cruelty.

He could see sweat dripping down Loki's back and as he leaned over Loki to change the angle, saw that his face was sweating too, his eyes closed and his mouth making gasping sounds that would be delicious if Thor hadn't known that they were driven from the sorcerer by pain instead of pleasure.

He was too caught up in his impending peak to be ashamed that those sounds spurred him thrillingly onwards. Suddenly, he realised something so shocking that he lost his rhythm. Loki was bracing himself on one hand only.

He couldn't be...was he pleasuring himself with his free hand? Loki opened his eyes as Thor stuttered to a halt and looked back at him, green eyes glaring furiously, their message clear. _Finish, Thunderer_.

The unspoken command was enough to drive Thor over the edge and for a moment he lost all sense of anything but his own, cresting self, coming inside Loki, spurting rope after rope of come inside his sorcerer.

As he came down, he thought - he was sure- that Loki was only moments behind him. They both collapsed, Thor still inside and on top of Loki, seed leaking out around Thor's cock, mixed with oil and blessedly, no blood.

Loki lay face down on the bed panting and trembling, his legs and arms no longer able to support him, never mind the heap of Asgardian muscle collapsed on top of him. Oaf.

It was a comforting feeling in a strange way. Thor was as much overwhelmed as Loki by the ordeal. Loki was annoyed at how hard he had come from the unwillingly base use he had been put to, but if Thor now had found a taste for it, Loki supposed he had better get used to it. A dull pain thudded in him; it was tolerable. He could tolerate it since he must.

The runic magic on his wrists and the magic of essences within settled on him, like a ephemeral cloth wrapping itself around his skin. He had felt it without realising what it was in the moment before his panic. Loki had not had enough of a sense of self to feel his ownership of his self slipping away out of his grasp, concentrating as he had been on the aching pleasure of the Thunderer in his intimacy.

So, it was done.

He tried to roll his master off him, but he needed the Thunderer's dazed co-operation. Loki then rolled on his back, feeling Thor's cock slide out, then his seed slipping out and down Loki's ass and thighs. Thor heaved himself up on his elbow, throwing his other arm over Loki, still looking worse for wear. Loki wondered how he himself looked.

Thor watched him for a moment with a curious expression.

"Your master is Thor Odinson, King of Asgard," he said, in a voice that brooked no argument.

Loki swallowed, feeling the knowledge settle on him, old knowledge now, being reinforced.

"SAY IT." Thor sounded unsure now.

Loki did not try to resist. He just followed the impulse that rose in him to obey.

"My master is Thor Odinson," Loki said in a toneless voice.

Interesting, there appeared to be some flexibility in the bond. He had not been forced to parrot Thor. However, he did feel a compulsion to honour the spirit of his master's instruction.

There was some freedom in this at least. He could still deny Thor his title by simply treating it as an unimportant detail. Let his master directly order Loki to call him king if acknowledgement meant that much to him.

The deep-in-his-bones understanding of Loki's new reality was accompanied by a profound sadness. He was glad he felt so deadened, he would not want to cry for Loki Laufeyson. Would his father? 

Wisps of seidr from his binding still surrounded him. It was ancient and powerful magic and he could taste it even with the cuffs muting his senses. Pulling the slivers he could taste towards him, he wondered if he could make use of them to break the cuffs.

There was no reason to do that now as once he received instructions from his master, he would surely be allowed what was his again, safely managed by his master's orders. But right now, he had no orders other than acknowledgement of his master, and so he was still free to try.

A last moment of utterly pointless rebellion to show that even bound, he would fight on his terms. Anger rose in him then, briefly, and he rode the stray wisps of magic back to the source and used them to lever open the door to where his own was locked away.

For a moment, he was hovering above the Tree of Life, basking in its glow. The door to his seidr opened a crack, and with a roar that he hoped was heard in all the Nine Realms, he opened his eyes in Thor's tent and poured everything he could (too late, too late) into tearing away the runes on those blasted cuffs.

At worst he would destroy his own connection to Yggdrasil, or die.

The sorcerer was trembling. Thor threw his arm over him in some kind of an attempt to pin him down even though he was otherwise motionless. Loki was in shock, as well he should be given what he had just endured. The repugnance writ large on Loki's body made it clear that the sorcerer had hated every touch inflicted on him by Thor.

Thor had seen for himself the sorcerer taking his pleasure, and realised it was a kind of resistance to Thor's attempt to subjugate him. This man would not be easy to tame, binding or no.

Almost nose to nose, Thor growled at the sorcerer, "Your master is Thor Odinson, King of Asgard."

He wasn't sure what telling the sorcerer this would achieve. Thor was frightened now, a feeling with which he was not familiar. He needed the sorcerer to tell him that Thor was his master, that the ritual had worked, that this had not been for nothing.

"SAY IT."

If the ritual had not worked, it was pointless, as the sorcerer could simply lie. But Thor felt he would know somehow now if Loki lied or otherwise disobeyed him.

"My master is Thor Odinson," Loki intoned after a moment.

Thor almost smiled. He could feel the truth of the statement. But also, Loki had refused to say it exactly as Thor had spoken it, and had omitted his title. He had a feeling that this meant that Loki had retained some of his spirit.

Ancient as this ritual was, the understanding if its working was limited. What was known was that the subject had to obey the caster as a slave obeys his master. He had worried that the sorcerer would be rendered a mindless drone, which would have been more of a shame than he had originally thought now that the sorcerer was flesh and blood beneath him, and not just the object of his pursuit and plans.

He looked more closely at Loki. There was no more life in his eyes than that of a gutted ﬁsh. Perhaps it had affected his mind after all? Loki seemed to be looking inwards for a long moment.

Suddenly, so suddenly that Thor almost jumped, Loki threw off Thor's arm in sitting up, snarled with rage, and it was with a deep throb of fear that Thor realised that the sound on the edge of his hearing was the cracking of the runic cuffs as a wave of energy surged from the sorcerer and washed over Thor, buffeting him.

He heard minor cries of distress and confusion in the camp indicating that the wave had spread beyond his tent. "Stop, Loki!" he cried. Loki sat glaring at him, chest heaving in deep, angry breaths. He realised that Loki had already stopped casting by the time he had spoken. One of the cuffs had a hairline crack across a rune.

He needed to get this crazed sorcerer under control immediately. Thor was very unsure of everything, and he hated being unsure. At least his awful actions had not been for nothing, he reassured himself in his most confident inner voice.

He knew though that rape was the only completely inexcusable crime. And, another voice said, a voice that sounded a little like his mother, he had also enslaved another person. What was slavery if not the rape of everything a person is?


	6. Invisible Bindings

Loki's master had ordered him to stop, so Loki stopped. He had stopped anyway, drained by shock and exhaustion. He sat, and he breathed, and listened to his heartbeat but otherwise ...stopped. He knew Thor was unsettled and he was glad. Had Thor seen the crack in the cuff? Only one cuff was necessary to bind Loki's seidr, the other merely reinforced the binding. He was still bound by the remaining cuff, but he would be able to overwhelm it eventually.

The cuffs were no longer the problem. He was bound in essence, now.

Loki knew that he should be glad that he had found a way to overcome the cuffs, at least. After all, it should have been impossible to do so, but he had turned his enemy's weapon to his advantage even as it cut him deep. As always he had found an opening, an exit, a pathway. He was still himself in that at least.

He waited for a command from his master. He did not care if one did not come. But there might be a time, when he recovered himself, that he could care again about openings, exits, pathways. 

Thor stood and wrapped a cloth around his waist. Looking down at a still Loki, he placed his hand gently on his jaw and tilted it so they were looking at each other. Thor winced at the raw vulnerability he saw in Loki's face, the resignation in his eyes. It was necessary, he reminded himself. He would not break the sorcerer if he could avoid it.

"Loki..." Speaking the sorcerer's name while he was clearly so raw was painfully intimate. "Loki, you will not take any action to harm me or mine, of which you are now part. Do you understand?" The sorcerer nodded slightly.

"Nor will you allow harm to me or mine." Thor took a deep breath which he did not realise he had needed. He felt on safer ground now.

"You will speak no word that is a lie. I am not ordering you to tell the truth. Do you understand?" Another nod.

"My immediate orders at any time supercede any other orders." Nod.

"I am not ordering you to obey any one other than me. I am not ordering you to bend your will to mine in all things. I am controlling your actions, not your mind." Nod.

"Do not do anything you know I would disapprove of. You may do what you know would displease me if you think it necessary. Or amusing I suppose. But cross the line between acting as you feel you must and acting in bad faith, and I will take steps to make sure it does not happen again." A shudder. Nod.

"Do you have any questions?" Loki shook his head sightly, still looking him in the eye.

Thor hoped his intentions were clear. He may have to fine-tune the instruction. He hoped that as they stood, they offered enough leeway to allow Loki the autonomy to make quick and difficult decisions under pressure and retain his intelligence and capacity to improvise. As long as Thor's commands maintained enough control to minimise any damage the sorcerer could do with that freedom which remained to him, all would be well.

It was a fine line. Thor was sure that Loki would test its boundary as far as he could.

The quiet one of the three male warriors that fought by Thor's side threw open the tent flap and peered in, weapon drawn. Hogun. He took in the scene, Thor naked except for a wrap at his waist, standing over a fully naked Loki who was sitting on the bed with his face turned towards Thor's by Thor's big hand, and relaxed.

"There was a disturbance."

"All under control now," replied Thor, not turning from Loki. "Send for the mage." Hogun gave the informal salute and closed the tent flap.

Loki looked up at his master and waited. He hated the feeling of dread that crept over him as Thor threatened to 'take steps' if Loki abused the gaps in his instructions. He had no doubt of the horror that would follow if his master decided that Loki was exploiting his generosity, such as it was.

The threat was clear. Thor would break Loki in his mind as surely and as easily as if he simply ordered Loki to lie on the ground and then snapped his spine with a swift boot to the neck. With an order he could turn Loki into a mindless drone.

All that stood between Loki and this fate was keeping the regard of the Thunderer by licking his boots and reassuring him that Loki would never exploit the gaps and soft places not explicitly covered by Thor's orders. Thor needed to be convinced that Loki would keep himself in line.

Loki knew that this was only the most obvious danger to him. The truth was, even if Thor's prickly temper was never triggered by Loki, Loki faced the slow systematic peeling away of the independence remaining to him. A gradual evisceration of his ability to think for himself. Would it have been easier if Thor had simply started by bending Loki's will to his own entirely? Treated him purely as a thrall?

He supposed he should be grateful. The Thunderer was an idiot who lacked empathy, at least for those he did not consider to be his peers, but he did not seem to be motivated by cruelty. Loki would have time find out if this was true, he supposed.

_I can tolerate this. _ He immediately put the idea out of his mind that this may be a part of the spell, to ease the yoke of slavery by making it seem endurable. It was just his survival instinct and training kicking in.

_I have overcome wor_...no, he couldn't lie to himself. He had been prepared by a challenging childhood and long training to endure, survive and overcome terrible things, but this was beyond all of them. Well, there it was. He would just have to learn how.

He wished he could speak to his father, and wondered what Laufey would do when he heard that his sorcerer son, the shadow prince of Jotunheim, was now part of the Asgardian army ripping through his lands. A ghost of an angry thought rose in Loki's head that Laufey would find a way to exploit his son's slavery if anyone could."Go clean up in the hot springs behind here and return within the hour." Thor threw him a towel and began to dress himself. "There will be clothing and food provided for you by then."

Loki stood slowly, suddenly aware of how his body ached all over -and inside, how badly had the brute bruised him?- and replied "Yes, master." with as little emotion as he could manage.

Thor winced. "Do not call me that. You may call me Majesty." _May I now_, thought Loki. _No king of mine_. "Yes, my prince," he said, with a little acid. Thor blinked and, surprisingly, smiled one of those sunny smiles. "Get out," he said, not unkindly. "We will eat when you are decent."

There were several pools near Thor's tent, one managing to keep icy due to the run-off from the glacier, and several which were bubbling hot. He sank into a gently bubbling one and allowed the heat to seep into his muscles, wincing slightly as the more sensitised parts of his skin reacted to the volcanic minerals and salts.

The day was slipping into night, and Loki's whole world had shifted with it. Tiredness began to dog his every thought and smallest action. The world looked strange tonight for many reasons.

He tugged at the cracked cuff. If he could be bothered, he could work it off but it was useless now, on or off. Leave it, let the Thunderer's minions put in the effort to remove it. The other still held his seidr fast, and if he had the energy or the will he could probably overwhelm it too eventually but for now, he couldn't be bothered.

When he returned to the tent, the woman who had pointed his hidden self out to Thor so long ago was also in the tent. She looked frightened. He gave her a short bow, stiffer than he had intended and apologised to her for her finding him in this state of undress.

Thor pointed to a leather box and told him he could have the cuffs removed first or dress first, his choice. He chose to dress, turning his back on the woman as she looked at the floor.

There were leathers of the same design that Loki had borrowed all that time ago during his first visit to these tents, and some cotton undershirts and wool and cotton tunics, all in green and black with gold accents. Loki put on a pair of the breeches and a cotton tunic.

Thor appeared to be reading something and absentmindedly eating some kind of stew. Once dressed, Loki approached the mage and held out his wrists.

She gasped as she saw the crack in the cuff, and Loki smirked. Thor rolled his eyes. "These will have to be reforged to work again as a pair," she stammered to Thor. "Yes, yes. We can speak about this later." Thor did not look up.

Removing the cuffs was a simple matter if one knew the runes, and Loki memorised them as the mage drew them over his wrists, even though he knew they were different each time the runes were ensorcelled.

Colour and sound seeped back into his world and he took a deep breath as he drew on his seidr. It flared green around him as Loki healed the remaining minor injuries from his battle with Thor, grimacing as he realised that he was not able to remove the scar on his back because it would displease his master. _Ugh_. _I'm stuck with it as long as I am stuck with him, I suppose_.

The mage gasped at the display and called 'Your Majesty!"

Thor looked up. "It's safe. The second ritual placed on the cuffs has been enacted, and he is bound safely. Do not fret." The mage looked as if she had every intention of continuing to fret and to panic besides. Thor placed a hand on her shoulder, whispered to her, and with a final look over her shoulder, she left the tent with the cuffs.

"Come, sit. Eat, if you are hungry." Loki was, and the stew was good. Thor put away his papers and Loki wondered if there was any advantage to getting a glance at them. Of course he could do nothing with any information he might glean that would harm the Asgardian effort but it was always useful to know as much as possible.

Thor said "You are to sleep here, with me, so I can keep an eye on you. You may sleep in the bed if you wish or at its foot if you prefer, but you will be cheek by jowl with me until I am sure of you. We stay here for another day and then move towards a fort in the north to clear it out. You will tell me all you know of this fort tomorrow, and plan for its fall."

Loki nodded. He knew that the commander there was probably his brother, Byliestr, but that was the sum total of his knowledge. Perhaps he could influence the Asgardian attack on the fort to maximise the chances of a safe escape for its defenders.

He was a little surprised that Thor intended him to share his bed although he supposed that apart from keeping him close at hand and out of mischief, Thor would want to get full use of his slave.

He sighed. Loki didn't find the idea of being forced to please the Thunderer too objectionable, only in that Thor was a war criminal and intent on destroying Loki's home and people, but it was going to be tedious in the extreme to be at someone's sexual beck and call. Nothing about this was palatable. But this was going to be Loki's reality for the foreseeable future. He could and would survive this.

Loki could only hope that Thor did not demand that Loki abase himself more than he already had, and perhaps Loki would be allowed to tend to his own needs once in a while. Loki was tired now, more than tired and wondered if Thor wanted a second round tonight. Maybe he would just take his pleasure again and not order Loki to any great feats of athleticism. Ugh, to be a performing monkey for this oaf.

Just his luck to be enslaved by a god of thunder, war and virility. And for all three of those roles to collide on Loki today. Loki was not a god, but if he was he would choose something much more lighthearted...as long as it had a sting.

Of course Thor had not chosen his divine domains, he had been born to them and grown into them as surely as an oak tree reaches it zenith in the sun. Loki on the other hand had had to carefully cultivate his talents with study and discipline. He was no less powerful than the Thunderer but his power ran along such different lines. He wondered if he would get an opportunity to study them working in tandem.

That could at least make this ordeal somewhat worthwhile, the opportunity to learn. And exploit that learning.

He felt himself move away from true consciousness, not for the first time since sitting down to eat. The boost of energy and contentment that he had felt when he and his seidr were reunited had faded and he just wanted to lie down. "You're exhausted. Go to bed. If you wish." Thor added. Loki wondered how long before Thor forgot or got bored of giving Loki the option to do as he would for things such as this.

Loki walked over to the bed, stripped as neatly as he could, and collapsed into it, trying not to groan. He was asleep within seconds, seidr humming contentedly around him, his soul vibrating like a glass on the point of shattering.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The wonderful Darkellaine has created a gorgeous piece of art depicting the scene where Thor gives Loki his commands of servitude at the beginning of this chapter.
> 
> Check out the original on here [Darkellaine's Tumblr ](https://darkellaine.tumblr.com/image/190953195206)


	7. Games Wolves Play

Despite his exhaustion, Loki slept only shallowly, waking in the grey dawn having never really fallen fully asleep. Thor's weight had woken him as he had climbed into bed beside him, and the snores kept Loki from properly sleeping for some time, as did the weight of Thor's arm as he flung it across Loki's body in sleep.

_The Thunderer trusts the binding magic implicitly, or he would not sleep so soundly. Is he named the Thunderer because of the noises he makes in his sleep?_ Thor's gentle snoring was not that bothersome, truth be told, but Loki wanted to hold onto something tangible as the reason for his light slumber.

Moving Thor's careless arm from across his body, Loki climbed out of the bed and watched the brightening skies from the flap in the tent. This was his first look at the camp as a whole from Thor's vantage point.

It was laid out with discipline and pride, each tent aligned perfectly to its neighbours, the fires well situated for comfort and safety, no debris in evidence, and the jakes dug a neat distance away from the camp itself. It stretched further than Loki was comfortable with, and the supply wagons looked well-stocked and well-managed.

He looked back into the tent where Thor still lay as if dead to the world. Loki suddenly felt very peeved. After months of vying for dominance on the battlefield with each other, Thor was behaving as if Loki was no longer a threat. Well, Loki supposed, he wasn't, but he was not entirely declawed either. Thor had not pulled his teeth. Teeth. Loki smiled. A smile that had a lot of wolf in it.

Loki moved back to the bed, and waited a few moments til he warmed up again, conscious of waking Thor too suddenly with cold hands. He was interested to see how much confidence Thor truly had in the binding of Loki Skytreader.

He took the oil that had been used to prepare him the previous night and warmed it in his hand. Reaching for Thor's cock which was already sporting a welcome to this fine morning, he stroked it gently once or twice to gauge its interest and swirled his oiled thumb around its head. It twitched and grew in his hand.

Loki had been right in his speculations, it was magnificent, even half-hard. _Even his balls are beautiful_, Loki thought sourly.

He ran his palm across them as he began to pump Thor's cock. He licked the base of it, getting some tongue on Thor's balls too, and he felt Thor shift and mumble something. He swirled his tongue over the balls properly for a few moments and then gently licked a stripe up the cock, still thumbing the head. Sucking the head into his mouth, he swirled his tongue again and teased Thor's slit, and was reward with an oath as Thor came fully awake.

Meeting his shocked look, Loki smiled around the cockhead in his mouth and nipped gently with his teeth, evincing a satisfying yelp, but no retaliation. Withdrawing for a moment with a dextrous lick-n-suck, and raising his head slightly Loki gave Thor a split-second wolf-smile. Looking him square in the eye, Loki lowered his head again, opened his throat and swallowed as much of Thor's cock as he could in one go.

The gasp and shudder he got in reward was worth the discomfort and he only gagged slightly once he managed to fully relax his throat. _Wouldn't it be sweet if that shudder had had a hint of fear in it_. He swallowed and sucked for a moment as much as he could, adjusting to the size, nose pressed into Thor's pubic hair, then withdrew slowly to breathe, sucking and circling the head again with his tongue. He nipped the head gently with his teeth before fisting Thor's cock and taking the head back into his mouth.

Thor's shock at finding his enemy prisoner and slave with his fist and tongue -and teeth!- around Thor's most vulnerables was obviously passing as he began to cant his hips slightly, obviously resisting the temptation to put his hand on Loki's head and direct -or force- him._ Ah well, plenty of time for that. This is my time for fun. _

He knew Thor had figured out his game and Loki felt amused that Thor allowed him to continue all the same. Thor wasn't relaxing into it exactly, which Loki was thoroughly enjoying, but he didn't flinch when Loki interspersed some very fine tongue work with a deliberate nip of the teeth. Thor trusted the binding well, then.

Or had a more highly developed sense of daring than Loki would have believed of him.

Loki had fully expected to be kicked off the bed and punished at best, or taken in hand forcibly and roughly made service his master at worst. Loki had intended to spit Thor's seed straight in his eye at the first opportunity if the latter.

To his surprise, Loki found himself settling into the servicing with some enthusiasm after he had judged his mildly terrorising teasing to have run its course. He began to drive to make Thor come, have him truly at Loki's mercy for a few moments. Thor seemed to sense the change and leaned into the pleasure only slightly warily.

Loki briefly considered doing something unpleasant but decided against it this time, wanting to see Thor's face as bliss washed over it. He had seen anger, triumph, amusement, calculation, fear, lust, confusion and sleep on Thor in these past 12 hours -had it really only been half a day?- and was curious as to what he would look like when everything lifted from those broad shoulders.

He wasn't disappointed. Thor thrust down Loki's throat almost fully as he came, and his face, his whole self, was one of the most beautiful things Loki had ever seen. Loki wished he could have seen it more closely, not just watching awkwardly from groin level. Thor was coming hard; Loki could feel the pulsing of his cock as it pumped down Loki's throat.

Loki pulled back a little out of curiosity for the taste of Thor's spend as Thor began to finish, so the head was just at the back of his throat. Even at the end of Thor's climax, Loki found swallowing it all a little difficult and some of Thor's seed escaped his mouth. He continued to suck Thor through, withdrawing as the expression of Thor's face moved from ecstatic to the slight frown that indicated over-sensitivity.

Thor focused on Loki, obviously wrung out, and exhaled, grabbing Loki by the hair to bring him up to his level.

Loki ran his tongue across his bottom lip to lap up the spilled seed and watched Thor's eyes follow the motion, then he wiped the rest of it off his chin with his palm and licked it up. Thor laughed and shook his head, his fist still in Loki's hair. Loki was enjoying the mild ache it was causing. He knew now what ecstasy looked like on that handsome face. What would euphoria look like, he wondered. 

Thor let him go and leaned back on the bed. "What game are you at?" he demanded as his breathing calmed. "You'll have to play to find out," replied Loki. Thor looked at him for a moment. Loki felt uneasy, and suddenly, Thor was moving and flipping Loki on his back. "Alright, I'll play." He clambered over Loki and straddled low down on Loki's legs.

Loki got a brief unpleasant flashback to the previous night, but he calmed himself because he could defend himself now. He wasn't chained, physically or magically, and he could defend himself as long as he did not harm Thor, or himself.

He was still naked after sleeping and, he now realised, quite aroused from his hard work of moments ago. To his astonishment, Thor grinned at him and moved his hand to Loki's stomach, though avoiding Loki's cock entirely. He licked his forefinger and started tracing patterns on Loki's chest, tracing the pattern of hair from Loki's stomach around his stiff cock and down to his balls with one finger, then two, then his whole hand, while moving his hands elsewhere all over Loki's lower body, everywhere but his actual cock and balls. His ass was strongly and gratifyingly kneaded, his thighs, his inner thighs teased with fingers and oil. It was pleasantly teasing, but bearable.

Finally, Thor clambered off Loki's lower legs and in between them, pushing Loki's legs up by the thighs so he could dip his head between. But he only scratched and nibbled and licked at Loki's ass, licking the cleft between his cheeks with a broad tongue that ghosted around Loki's still aching asshole, sucking on Loki's inner thighs so close to his sac, gently biting the crease of Loki's hips, circling his tongue on the skin around Loki's pubic hair but never once touching his hard, straining cock.

Loki started to bite down the whimpers that threatened to emerge from his throat as Thor reached behind him with an oiled finger and pushed gently into his sore and sensitive passage. Loki knew what Thor was looking for and he tensed just before Thor crooked his finger and stroked the soft firm bundle of nerves.

He gasped with pleasure and annoyance and a little pain, and felt the Thunderer laugh at the noise. Before he could atop himself, Loki found himself snarling, "For the love of...! Do I have to beg you each time you impose yourself on me? Do this, or do not, I cannot wait anymore!"

Thor smiled the most smug smile Loki thought he had ever seen and he wanted to slap it, but then that smile lowered itself -finally- on Loki's cock and Loki groaned as a hot tongue swirled wetly up and around the head. Thor did not take in much more than the head but Loki was so close to his peak that it was all he needed, and he resisted the urge to fist his hands in Thor's hair and direct him as he sucked. Thor's hand, much more expert than the previous night, pumped Loki's length into Thor's mouth and Loki soon felt himself ready to finish.

"I'm about to..." he didn't think Thor would like for Loki to come in his mouth and indeed Thor stopped sucking and licking as soon as Loki indicated his peak but Thor worked him through it with some surprisingly filthy words whispered hotly into his ear as well as a tight warm strong fist.

Laying beside Thor after, beginning to regain his breath, Thor's heavy arm thrown across him again, Loki was not sure how the hels he lost control of that situation so quickly, but he found did not mind.

Thor smiled at the thoughts of the battle of wits he had begun with this troublesome captive, sure that in the end he was going to lose but willing to risk the consequences.

They both sobered up at the thought of the march ahead and the battle to come.


	8. Face in the Dirt

Loki went to the ice pool to gather his thoughts, to fortify himself against whatever the day would bring. He had instructions to return to the tent for breakfast, and he was already getting accustomed to the feeling of simply following Thor's orders. He knew he should be horrified at how natural it felt to accept and act on Thor's commands. But he was not. At best, Loki was resigned to being obedient to Thor. At worse, he did not think about it at all.

Thor's commands. _Do nothing he would not approve of. But I may displease him if I judge it to be necessary. Or amusing._

Loki did not think the Thunderer had meant to set him up to fail, but there was a flutter of uncertainty in his stomach at the ambiguity of these commands. The flutter threatened to grow to an ache when accompanied by the memory of the threat which hung over him if Thor came to believe that Loki had deliberately blurred the lines of the distinction, whether it was true or not. Loki did not think he in fact could do something of which Thor disapproved. His mind would not run in that direction when he tried.

_Leave the camp without express permission. Attack the Asgardian camp while within_. No. He could _think_ about them, plan for it, but he knew he could not act.

What if he simply made a poor call in distinguishing between what Thor would disapprove of, and what would only displease him? Well, nothing to be done about that.

He would act as he always did and take the consequences as he always did, for good and for bad. The stakes could be no higher, his very sense of self at stake. He had to accept, had to face that his selfhood, his autonomy of action and some autonomy of thought, was already eroding.

_I will not go gentle into that good night_. If the darkness of slavery was to overshadow and eat into who he was, he would fight it every step of the way. Thor would have to strike at him with all the force of Mjolnir to break him. He was not going to give up just because it was clear he had lost. And he had utterly lost.

He wished Thor had not forbidden him from harming himself, or letting harm come to himself. He was Thor's now, and no longer had such autonomy. 

Slipping into the ice pool, he hissed and allowed the cold to centre him. A night in a warm tent had affected him more than he expected, this was quite painful. A night beside a warm body too, he supposed. As he adapted to the cold, he closed his eyes and considered. He had established and accepted that he could only obey the Thunderer.

He wondered how to take advantage, to help his people, his land, his King.

He thought about the the path the war would take with him now unable to assist the Jotunn army. There had been at best only weeks left in the war, such was the devastating power of the Asgardian forces, and now perhaps with Loki removed from the Jotunn side, there were days. Especially if Thor ordered Loki to attack his own people.

Here in the pool, he was too focussed on the cold to allow his usual defences and fears and to shape his thoughts. Horror did not descend and overwhelm him.

This was the reality he had to accept. He would have to fight his own people. It was going to happen. Loki had a brief moment of wishing he had been enslaved only for bedplay. As humiliating as it would be, he would have gladly begged to only be Thor's pleasure slave if he thought it would spare him the burden of this more cruel duty; he would have begged to act as a camp whore if that's what it took. But that would change nothing.

Thor was not as kind as he thought himself to be. And his enslavement of Loki gave neither of them good choices.

Loki centred himself again. The reality was that the war was over and Jotunheim had lost. Continuing to resist cost lives on both sides, Jotunn losses far outweighing the Asgardian. An entire generation of Jotunn had been decimated, particularly the men, in a frighteningly short time by the Asgardian war machine. The faces on the Jotunn front lines were becoming younger and younger, and more and more scared. He had heard even the Asgardians talk of it on the battlefield as he had walked invisible among them in the aftermath of battles lost. Loki had a brief moment of anger at his father, unadulterated by guilt or by older, more selfish angers.

Loki had only heard of his father's boldness -he refused to listen to the whisper of the word _madness_ that surfaced when he thought about these events- after Laufey's actions had already provoked the Asgardians to re-invade, to reignite a war that the Jotunn had already more than lost when Loki was only a raw newborn. In this new iteration of the war, Loki had had no chance to intervene and exercise diplomacy or discretion or even the knife if circumstances had called for it.

His attempted assassination of Thor was the earliest he had been able to try to shape events. He wondered if he was still able to feel loyalty to Laufey given that Thor would disapprove of it. But Thor said he controlled Loki's actions, not his will. _I serve my King still, not this jumped up princeling_, thought Loki. Thor would be displeased. Relief and disbelief warred within him._ I serve my King_.

Older angers rose unbidden all the same. Why had Laufey put his eldest, most sensitive son through the tortures of his many trainings in warcraft, statecraft, spycraft and seidrcraft throughout the Nine Realms only to bypass him completely in these plots and plans? Loki might have averted this war if given the chance. No matter. The present is what mattered. The present. The war needed to be brought to a close, and fast, even if it meant defeat for Jotunheim. Better to lose clean than bleed dry. Loki would do what he needed to achieve this.

He returned to the tent for breakfast and found the Warriors Three and the Lady Sif outside. Wrapping his towel around his waist to spare Sif the sight of him, Loki stopped and smiled with as much smirk as he could summon. "I'm sorry to have denied you all the personal pleasure of my capture, but if you wish to lord it over me now, I cannot stop you."

Sif smiled, perhaps a little amused.

"Actually we were wondering how you would perform in the training ring against each of us one-on-one. Without your seidr."

Loki narrowed his eyes. "You could surely find a better excuse to beat me or humiliate me if you wished, Lady Sif. You need only ask your King for permission."

Sif replied, seriously, even respectfully, "None of us needs an excuse, sorcerer. But we offer you a chance to defend yourself at least."

A servant arrived with a tray and briefly inclined his head before entering the tent. Loki passed the others to follow and they did not stop him, for which he was relieved.

He did not intend to pretend he was anything more than he was, a prisoner and a slave and therefore at their mercy. He also did not intend for them to pretend that anything they inflicted on him in revenge or anger or pettiness was anything less than the abuse of their power over him. He could not truly defend himself and he would not let them pretend otherwise to themselves.

He did not blame them for the wanting of personal revenge though. He had done terrible things to them and their comrades.

Thor turned and welcomed his friends into his tent, ignoring Loki. As Loki dressed and breakfasted by the bed, Thor and his companions discussed the next target, the fort where he thought Byliestr commanded, and the forward rider's reports.

"Loki, come, and bring the tray." Thor absentmindedly picked at the food as Loki waited in his Asgardian green and gold for instructions from the King.

"Now. Tell us all you know about the fort. Omit nothing." 

Loki took a deep breath and began to describe what he knew.

In the early afternoon, Loki stepped into the training ring. The broad one, Volstagg, and both of Thor's other male companions, looked on, each with a different expression; Hogun was intent, Volstagg grinning and ready for a show, Fandral cocky. Thor was distracted.

Loki had managed to keep the information about his relationship to Byliestr to himself. He did not truly think it relevant to the military effort and anyway, the question he had not been of the fort commander. He wasn't certain Byliestr was the commander, but Loki mentioned his name anyway in case omitting this possible knowledge might spark distrust or anger in Thor if discovered. He could not afford to be caught lying by omission.

Thor would certainly be displeased with Loki's withholding of the fact that the fort commander was very possibly the first prince of Jotunheim, and Loki's younger brother besides, but Thor had shown no interest in any other aspect of warfare than the pure military, and the omission would not harm Thor or his people.

Loki was skating dangerously close to the edge in withholding the full truth of his identity. Despite everything, it felt good.

And now, here in the early afternoon in the Asgardian camp, he was going to get his ass handed to him by Lady Sif.

A crowd of Einherjar had gathered, strangely silent, to witness the contest. The newly captive Jotunn witch was about to be displayed to the assembled fighting men and women of Asgard. Loki felt their curiosity mingled with an undercurrent of fear. Well, he would feed their curiosity and manipulate their fear to suit his purposes here. And Loki's immediate purpose was to survive.

Thor realised what Sif and the Warriors Three had in mind when they suggested to Thor that they each face Loki in the practice ring. They wanted the satisfaction of giving their captured enemy a thorough beating to assuage their anger at Loki's deeds on the battlefield. An all-too-understandable impulse, but one Thor could not allow to undermine his plans for the sorcerer.

Thor had nevertheless acceded to their request; it would have its uses. Despite being a skilled fighter in his own right, Loki was unlikely to best any of them in a straight physical contest as he had obviously favoured honing his magical talents over his martial skills. If one of them bruised Loki a bit and knocked him on his backside a few times, and in public too, that might be enough to assuage their well-earned anger at him, and that of the troops too.

It was important for Thor to display the sorcerer to his soldiers and show that he had been tamed. Loki might be a target for hotheaded or opportunistic soldiers otherwise who might wish to hobble the sorcerer's ability to harm their King and their comrades if they felt that Loki was allowed to walk around the camp apparently free and unfettered.

And it would be entertaining to see how Loki subverted the expectations of everyone, of which Thor had no doubt he would do.

He had decided however that Loki should face only one of the four, not all of them, and he allowed Loki the decision of which of them to face. He did not want his new tool to be too damaged.

Loki had chosen to fight Sif, probably, Thor guesses, because Loki wanted to give the impression that he thought her the easiest of the four to defeat. Sif had overcome many early challenges from blind idiots who Thor had thought would have known better. Instead of seeing the mettle of the warrior before them, they saw only the woman.

Thor had learned the folly of those who dismissed Sif, and deplored their assessment of femininity as a flaw, an inconvenience. His mother had stayed silent when Thor had supported Sif but he knew that she too saw the core of Sif's character and was proud of Thor for standing by her.

Thor very much doubted that Loki underestimated Sif on the basis of her sex, but interestingly, he certainly gave the impression of doing so.

Thor's thoughts on this were proven correct as Loki and Sif faced each other across the ring, quarterstaves in hand. Loki stood there almost lazily, in a defensive position. Thor knew how fast the sorcerer's reflexes could be, though, and he was sure Sif knew too from bitter experience. Sif attacked first, testing. Loki whirled the staff in a workmanlike fashion, almost contemptuously.

The crack of wood on wood was sharp, and all was quiet again. The watching crowd barely moved, barely made a sound. Sif advanced again and this time Loki put a little effort into blocking her attack, and gave her an infuriating smile. Suddenly Thor realised what he was doing.

Loki wasn't actually trying to provoke Sif, or at least not just that. He was putting on a show for the gathered Asgardians. Loki understood that they had gathered to see him taught a lesson, humiliated by one of their own, beaten -into the ground, for preference. And Loki intended to make it as satisfying a spectacle for them as he could to see the Jotunn sorcerer defeated. 

_A survivor_. The thought came from nowhere, but Thor knew it was true. Loki was accustomed to playing the long game, to surviving long enough to escape or to win. So to ensure his best chance of surviving this ordeal, his enslavement in the camp of his enemy, he was going to let them see him beaten down in the more satisfying way possible. A humiliating, painful defeat at the hands of one their finest warriors would mean he was no threat.

Thor was all the protection that Loki needed, which Loki probably knew too, but Loki obviously saw no point in wasting an opportunity to take his survival into his own hands. Playing the knave in the fighting ring, like a character in those showy displays of play contests in the carnivals, was a way to establish himself as a figure of hate and a figure of fun once he was defeated. Harmless, contained, a buffoon not to be minded. Not the creature of pure menace that they had faced on the battlefield and walked in Aes skin.

Ah, Loki was a dangerous one, Thor had known that before even knowing his name. _Let me count the ways in which he is dangerous_.

Sif attacked strongly now, forcing the sorcerer back. He frowned slightly as he dodged and blocked her first blows and yelped as she made her first successful strike. A murmur went through the watching crowd. He growled, only slightly theatrically, and visibly gathered himself, apparently finally taking this contest seriously. They circled each other and he made his first feint. Sif dodged easily and retaliated, barely missing the sorcerer.

He struck again and and again, a rapid series of blows that Sif parried and avoided deftly. Thor was sure neither of them had truly tested the other yet although Loki showed suggestions of beginning to pant. Which Thor did not believe for a second. Neither did Sif from what Thor could see. She had a look on her face that suggested to Thor, who knew her intimately, that she was beginning to see what the sorcerer was doing. And that she had no choice but to allow Loki to play his game, to use her as a pawn to manipulate the watching crowds. 

She attacked now without mercy. Loki was hard pressed to defend and the look of concentration on his face was not feigned.

He looked like he was beginning to really engage with the fight, and to Thor's surprise, both Sif and Loki seemed to be enjoying the challenge. They whirled around the ring for some minutes, with Loki displaying good footwork and a confidence with the staff that Thor was not expecting. Sif landed several blows, at least two to every one of Loki's successful strikes.

Loki grunted just theatrically enough to the most obvious blows, and some satisfied snickers could be heard in the crowd. Loki's footwork proved itself when Sif jammed the end of her staff into the soft space just below the ribs and he collapsed inwards, not quite losing his balance but instead losing precious seconds where he was able to defend himself. The crowd shifted now, mostly quietly. There were a few cheers.

A rapid strike to Loki's head followed which did put him, bloodied, on the ground, to a gasp from the crowd, but he flicked out one long leg in a sweep in the blind hope it might connect. The speed surprised Sif and she crashed down beside him. The crowd groaned. She recovered faster than he did and Loki found himself defending against downward strikes while splayed on the ground. He managed to strike her hard enough on the hip on the upswing to force her back and flipped on his feet, bringing the fight to her.

Sif's superiority began to be clear as she batted off his increasingly wild attacks with skill and a cool focus that belied the sweat on her brow. Loki appeared to be putting his all into the final blows he was able to manage, looking to Thor's eye like his full focus was on his opponent. It was a good look on him, flashes of intensity showing in green eyes, body alert and thrumming with disciplined energy. The crowd began to cheer as Sif started to drive Loki back with strong, controlled, brutal attacking blows. For all his focus and evident skill, Loki was now completely on the defensive. 

Sif landed three painful body strikes on Loki and he landed one on her before she disarmed him, and raised her staff for a killing blow, probably to the throat. Loki dropped to his knees, arms spread out wide in surrender, blood cascading down his head from a probably quite minor scalp wound, and smiled that knife smile he had. "I yield."

He was breathing hard. Sif was panting. And angry. Thor stepped into the ring, trusting Sif not to act on her anger, and walked behind Loki. He pressed one booted foot down on Loki's back and forced him to bow to Sif, face in the dust of the ring. The crowd fell silent.

"Whom do you serve?"

The reply came muffled from the ground. "You, my prince." Thor removed his foot and grabbed Loki's hair to pull his head back.

"Whom do you serve?"

Loki's face was covered in blood and sweat and dirt. The reply came more clearly

"You, my prince."

Thor slapped his head, hard.

"I am the King of Asgard. Who do you serve?"

Loki sighed and looked him in the eye.

"I serve my King," he whispered.

The whisper travelled in the silence. Loki looked defiant despite all. Thor could not entirely hide a sardonic smile at Loki's blatant -to Thor- resistance. _Hiding his true loyalties in plain sight. Not hidden enough from me, sorcerer. I am beginning to get the measure of you_.

Thor kicked him again so Loki fell over on his side. He did not look defeated, thought Thor, he looked like a coiled serpent. Covered in dirt, sweat and blood and on a heap on the group, he still looked dangerous. Thor looked at the crowd. They did not seem to notice. They mostly cheered and whooped and laughed at their fallen enemy, all the harder for seeing the thing that had stalked their nightmares ground into the dirt.

A few looked thoughtfully at the prone, solitary figure on the ground who was staring murderously at the dirt. Thor met the eye of one such soldier, who looked back at him sceptically. _I know_, thought Thor, _just because a snake is still does not make it less deadly. _

Thor looked at Sif and she grimaced. To Thor's surprise, she reached a hand down to Loki.

To his own evident surprise, Loki took it and stood up beside her.

"Did you really try?" she asked in a low voice.

"Of course I bloody did," he looked annoyed. "I may have play-acted a little but were my efforts so pathetic that you thought I wasn't trying?"

She appraised him and said "If you want more training in this, I would be happy to give it. With Thor's permission of course."

Loki grumbled about being beaten about again, but did not refuse.

"Get cleaned up," Thor told him. "We depart in one hour."

Loki washed quickly and staunched the bleeding on his head with little difficulty and no need for magical healing. Sif had certainly pounded him thoroughly, he was glad to have never faced her properly when she wielded her staff and blades with intent to kill. Sif had understood his game fairly quickly, and she was angry with him for using her to present a cocky, easily-outsmarted version of himself to her comrades, but he had genuinely given the fight his all so she had no reason to indulge her anger.

He hoped his beating at her hands and his abasement at the feet of Thor would make him less of a target for the unimaginatively vengeful among the Einherjar.

Loki had taken a huge gamble in looking Thor in the eye and telling him that Loki served his King, because they both knew that Loki's king was not Thor. Thor had finished their display as Loki had expected, and Loki supposed it had suited his own purposes well enough. Strangely, Thor knew damned well that Loki had essentially spit in Thor's eye when Loki declared his loyalty to Laufey-King in front of his assembled troops, but he had not punished Loki for it.

Evidently, Thor had got what he wanted out of their display, and what he had wanted was the _illusion_ of Loki's total submission. Loki's master appeared to be telling the truth when he said he did not wish to actually break him.

Thor's tent had been folded and packed by the time he was finished getting dressed. Loki was to meet Thor at the head of the line of horses and wondered if he was going to be put across the saddle like a sack of meal or if he was going to have to keep pace on foot, tied to Thor's bridle. Other horrors flitted through his head as he approached the horses' line, Thor astride his warhorse.

"This is yours," Thor said, moving his beast aside. "Treat her well."

A fine mare stood there, between Thor and Fandral. So he was to ride at his prince's side. Like a trophy at a triumph, but at least one with some dignity.

He wondered if Thor realised that Loki continued to refused to acknowledge him as king. He had called him the king of Asgard once, in mocking, but had never truly bowed to Thor as king. As his master, yes, as his prince, yes, as the general of the army that Loki now served yes, Loki had spoken to Thor as such. But not as his King. Thor was the master of his actions, not his will. Not wholly. Not yet.

They marched on the fort, and on Byliestr. Two days to battle.


	9. Yield

The Jotun general had been hard used, arms twisted unnaturally behind him as he dangled from the wrists. Bruised and slashed all over his body, blood spattered the ground below him from the wounds across his abdomen, some of the gashes revealing layers of lean fat and muscle beneath.

Some Aesir were gathered around a nearby brazier, which judging by the drag marks in the snow leading from it to underneath where the Jotun was hanging, was responsible for the burns on his lower legs.

Loki watched as the guards -his torturers? Or were the torturers done with him and gone? What had they learned? – poked at him with the butt end of a spear, making the general grunt in pain as the movement of his body shifted the weight on his agonised wrists and shoulders to ignite new pain.

Thor stopped at the sight and grunted in surprise at the spectacle.

As the general slowly swung in the direction of the approaching party, Loki did not need to see what remained of his face to know that it was that of his brother Byliestr, beloved of their father. Though his eyes seemed ruined, buried in a mass of criss cross cuts and drying blood, Byliestr raised his head.

“Loki? Could it be you? You wear the colours of the invaders.”

Loki swallowed, the sound of his brother’s pained voice scraping across his hearing.

Thor looked curiously at Byliestr and then at Loki, who sank to one knee, took Thor’s hand in his and kissed it.

“I live to serve the King.”

He looked Byliestr straight in the eyes, hoping he could see Loki's in turn.

Byliestr hesitated, and something like a smile crossed his face. He understood.

“There is a cost for power such as yours, Loki.”

Loki stood, ready, and drew a knife from a pocket dimension.

“Yes. We have both paid,” Loki murmured.

Byliestr inclined his head infinitesimally, and Loki let fly before the Einherjar surrounding them both could react.

The knife struck true, piercing Byliestr’s chest and spilling heartsblood in a spurt, two spurts, three, and it was done.

Time slowed for Loki as he felt more than saw or heard the Aesir explode in movement around him. The moment the knife had left his hand, he automatically had begun to fall into the yield position; down on his knees, lifting both arms to place palms on the back of his head.

Hogun kicked him in the belly so instead he fell fully forward and his head banged against the ground, but he maintained the yield position with his face in the snow, Hogun’s hand on the back of his neck unnecessarily holding him in place. He felt bruises form across his forehead.

After a few moments he felt another hand on his collar, and was pulled up to face Thor, who wore an impassive expression.

Ensuring that Loki had a clear view of Byliestr’s still-hanging corpse, he said calmly and evenly, “You will stay here, in this position, until I say otherwise. You will take no other action until I say otherwise. Do you understand?”

At a nod from Loki, he let go of Loki’s collar, turned and strode away out of Loki’s sight, over to the brazier judging from the crunch of ice and snow under his boots. Loki heard the murmur of Thor and his counsellors conferring as the snow began to fall again.

Loki had learned from long experience that physical and mental endurance was one of his gifts, one for which he was not sure he was grateful. Sometimes, he thought, it would be easier to have no choice but to break, to give in to being broken. To take the consequences of weakness sooner rather than later, because eventually everyone, no matter how strong or tough, broke.

Endurance meant only the prolonging of suffering.

As the freezing afternoon turned into evening, and the dark depths of the ice-laden night beckoned, he shivered and tried not to keen from the pain of tense, stressed muscles. He was strong and flexible from hard training and use of his body, but his muscles were not meant to endure the pressure of hours and hours of maintaining a single position.

At least by focusing on processing the physical pain, he could pretend to forget about the sight of his brother’s corpse hanging before him. He had not been close to Byliestr, but they had been brothers, sharing a love for their demanding father, their desperate people and their ailing land.

Though Loki was firstborn, Byliestr had been first prince and Loki the third, if he counted at all. Both accepted this as fitting given their nature and character. Loki accepted that his destiny was to rule by influence rather than brute force, never to sit on the throne of Jotunheim, but to whisper advice from behind it. 

Loki was used to the limits of the world he had been born into, which limited him not at all in any way that mattered to him. He was not bitter about having been born a runt. It had liberated him in some ways, allowed him to skip across boundaries, walk along the edges.

Equally, Byliestr had dutifully accepted that his role was to inspire loyalty as the embodiment of the Jotunn physical ideal astride the royal dais, serving as the expected public face of the royal family . He probably would have preferred to marry a love match and raise a family, indulging in some hunting now and again, than spend his time serving his people in a royal marriage arranged for political gain. He served anyway. Like Loki, he knew his duty.

Now Helblindi would be first prince, less willing to rule wisely, less able to rule justly, less likely to hear Loki. If Helblindi even still lived.

Loki began to worry about the effects of the cold on his hands. He felt frozen, and knew his body temperature must already be dangerously low. At least his shivering kept him somewhat warm. His Aesir form was not defeated by the cold just yet, even if it was suffering badly from it. His fingers were protected by the heat of his head for the moment, but in the cold of full dark, would it be enough to ward off frostbite?

His toes were protected by the lining of his boots and he did not need his toes to cast, anyway, he supposed. His nose would blacken and die if it got cold-damaged enough.

He wished he knew Thor’s intentions for this punishment. Simply pain, cold and the horror of facing the body of a former comrade-in-arms?

He could handle that, he thought, awful though it was proving to be.

Dismemberment and disfigurement?

He would have to handle that if it came to it. Adapting his casting style must be possible, somehow, some way. Losing fingers could not be the end. 

Death?

Thor regarded him as a tool, and so was unlikely to let him die, he thought. He hoped. Otherwise he would freeze to death in the snow tonight, at the foot of his dead brother. Once he stopped shivering, it would be nearly over.

At least once he stopped shivering, some of the pain might lift, although he would probably be senseless to pain at that point anyway.

He wiggled his fingers and regretted it as the nerve endings erupted, though it was proof they were still in working order.

The war council continued by the brazier, which appeared to be topped up regularly though he could feel none of its heat at this distance. It seemed unusual for a war council to happen outdoors, especially on a cold day such as this, so Loki assumed the location of Thor’s HQ for today was influenced by Thor’s desire to watch Loki’s punishment and perhaps to allow all who approached the king to see his disobedient Jotunn sorcerer’s suffering.

He groaned as his body twitched involuntarily, desperately seeking relief for his exhausted muscles. He wondered if Thor would be amused by forcing a frost giant to freeze to death. Loki rarely thought about his birth form, and even more rarely shifted into it, wondering suddenly which form he would be buried in.

Would the glamour die with him, and allow him to be buried as a Jotunn? Or would he continue in the form that he preferred, and be buried in the shape of the Aesir?

He supposed it didn’t matter, and then wondered if he would even be given a burial at all if he did not survive the night. Eventually he was going to collapse out of the yield position, and he couldn’t be sure when. His body was growing too cold to properly feel the muscles begin to fail. And then he would be punished for failing to obey.

It probably wasn’t too far off. 

Later, he was not sure how much later, he felt the world lurch slightly as his body collapsed in what might have been an ungainly sprawl if he wasn’t so stiff and frozen. His vision flashed grey for a moment and as he came back to the pain and burning and freezing cold of his furled body, he felt the scrunch of snow as boots shuffled beside him as kind, strong hands lifted him up. 

He was gently but firmly pushed and pulled back into the yield position, and he heard Thor’s voice over the roaring in his ears say, “Stay in this position, and do nothing more until I say so. Do you understand?”

He understood.

He wasn’t sure if he managed a coherent reply in between the heaving sobs that forced their way painfully up from his chest.


	10. The Truth Hurts

Night had fallen, but beyond that Loki had no idea how long he knelt in the snow, back straight, hands clasped behind his head. He had become delirious, he thought, and collapsed again without even realising, only becoming aware of it as he felt himself being lifted under the armpits from a prone position and dragged back towards the camp. It felt rather like it was happening to someone else. If Byliestr had been cut down, Loki could not raise his head enough to see.

He tried to move his legs, to walk rather than be dragged but he simply couldn't. He felt drunk. He wasn't sure if his legs wouldn't work because his muscles were locked from the stress of the yield position or frostbitten and frozen or if he simply was obeying Thor's order to do nothing until Thor ordered otherwise. Hearing muttered conversation above the high pitched noise in his ears, Loki realised he was being dragged by two of Thor's friends, Volstagg and Hogun, he thought.

They seemed unhappy about something, judging by the tone of their discussion. _Well, I would walk if I could_. He must have passed out again because when he became aware again of his surroundings, he realised he was beside the hot springs that Thor habitually camped beside. Fearing he was about to be pitched in and boiled alive, Loki tried to scream and attempted to struggle. He heard Thor's voice.

"Calm down. No harm will come to you here. Set him down."

He was set down relatively gently on warm volcanic earth and manouevered until he was propped up with his back against a rock.

Loki's clothes were removed and he was wrapped in a warmed blanket. Hogun held a cup to his mouth and he sipped what he could. It was sweet, and as far as he could tell, hot. Thor appeared in his field of vision, wrapping a smoking rock in a blanket, placing it on Loki's chest. Thor nodded to his companions and they hesitated a moment.

"What are you waiting for? Go." he ordered.

Hogun spread his hands but said nothing, and Loki heard their footsteps fade as they returned to their own tents.

Thor continued to hold the cup to his lips and refilled it from a hipflask when it emptied. Loki half slept for some time and felt himself come to slowly.

"Where are your friends?" he managed. Loki tried to understand whether their absence meant worse things for him or not.

"They disapprove of what I did to you today," he said.

Loki turned his eyes to Thor's face. "Can't imagine why," he mumbled. 

He moved the hot rock from his chest to his groin. He was beginning to feel better, but utterly exhausted.

Thor folded his arms and stared at the ground. "I told I would punish you if you crossed the line. I didn't want to. I don't understand how you even were able to act as you did. You cannot imagine I would approve of you killing an enemy commander in the middle of interrogation."

Loki sneered. He couldn't help it.

"I _imagined_ that you would approve of me offering a mercy killing to a brave soldier who was being tortured to no good purpose. There is nothing he could have told you that would have been useful to you at this stage of the war, and you know it. Anything Byliestr knew, I probably know. And you don't have to torture me to make me comply with your orders. Oh wait, you do, it would seem. Such a hardship for you..." Loki wanted to spit the title _master_ at Thor but he had been forbidden it. He settled for his other favourite insult. "..._my prince_."

Thor grimaced. Loki did not think it was for the insult. "I did not order the general's torture. I came upon it at the same time you did, as you well know."

Loki stared at him in disbelief. "It was done by your men, under your watch! Are you their commander and king, or no?"

Thor glowered at him. "They will be punished. It is not how we do things on Asgard."

Loki barked a laugh. "No, on Asgard I would imagine when you fought wars among yourselves that you at least treated your prisoners as people. Here on Jotunheim we have not had that privilege."

Thor hesitated. "Yours is a special case, Loki. You know this."

Loki was growing bored of the conversation. "Oh Norns, I am not speaking about myself. I've always known that my power has a cost, although I did not expect to pay so dearly. I am talking of the ordinary soldiers slaughtered after surrender, the murder of the civilians too old or poor to escape your army's advance."

Thor was silent.

After a moment he said "The Jotunn commander...Byliestr. He said as much about the cost of your power. How did you know him?"

It was Loki's turn to be silent.

Thor sighed. "I will not order you to answer."

Loki risked shifting a little to a more comfortable position and groaned with pain. He moved the hot rock back to his chest.

"I have met many of the commanders in the course of this war. I hold no official command myself but I sat in many of the meetings. I met Byliestr there, at war councils. We were not close, if that is what you are asking, and you know that I speak plainly and true. As for his comment about my power coming at a cost, I suppose we are a superstitious people."

Thor considered. Loki could not track his thoughts. What was Thor worried about? Loki held to the truth as closely as he could in weaving the lie by omission. It was all true, just not the full truth. _Swallow the lie, Thunderer_. He hoped that Thor did not demand the full truth.

Actually, he didn't care. He wasn't going to give it up without a fight, but so what if it all came out? Thor obviously regretted allowing Loki some freedom of will and was about to obliterate Loki's ability to think for himself so, to hels with it. It no longer mattered. But he was damned if he was going to give anything up freely.

Thor sighed, a deep, regretful sigh. He sat beside Loki and took him by the arm. Loki tensed and Thor let go.

Hesitantly he said, "I would help loosen your stiff muscles, if you will."

"I could just heal myself, if _you_ will," snapped Loki. He was probably too exhausted to do so, but this might be among his last chances to needle Thor.

"No," said Thor. "At least not yet. I wish to understand what happened better before deciding on how to proceed."

Loki rolled his eyes. "Alright, my prince. Fine. Loose away."

Thor took Loki's arm at the elbow and started to dig in with his big fingers.

Thor focussed on massaging Loki's arms. Loki wondered if he would end up with more bruises but the pressure, while painful, was deep and relieving. Thor was silent again for some time. He moved to Loki's shoulder, as much as he could reach given Loki's position and Loki groaned in pain and relief under his touch.

"Do you know why I punished you as I did?"

Loki ran through several possible answers in his head but decided against any of them. He simply did not have the energy.

"Surprise me, my prince."

Thor pushed Loki gently forward so Loki could not see his face, and started work on Loki's upper back, which screamed with agony at Loki's new position. Loki gritted his teeth. Thor spoke slowly, as if feeling his way through the words.

"Well. I could not figure out how you disobeyed my order. I told you not to do anything that I would disapprove of. I could not see how your action in killing the...in killing Byliestr did not contradict that. The only conclusion I could come to is that you somehow had broken or bypassed the binding."

Loki leaned back to look at Thor's face. He was only a little surprised to see fear on it.

"You gave me leeway to interpret situations. You cannot be surprised when I do so. Do you deny you would have taken the same action if you had seen the situation as I did? Though I have seen little enough evidence of it, I believe you have enough compassion to have done so, if only -and this is key my prince- if only you allowed yourself to see your enemy as a person like you or your companions are."

Thor stared at Loki without expression.

Loki continued. "If you were able to concede that we Frost Giants feel and think and love and hate like you Aesir, you would have made that decision. But you are blinded, and so I made that decision for you in your blindness."

_Well, in for a penny, in for a pound_, thought Loki. _May as well be hung for a sheep as a lamb_.

He continued. "Terrible deeds are done in wartime. But you have made no attempts to cultivate decency among your troops. If you had, they would not have done such an awful thing in plain view even to an enemy. You do not think of us, of the Jotunn, as deserving of basic decency. We are barely more than beasts to you. So that is why I think you punished me as you did today, my prince. And that is why you will cut the threads of what remains of my free will when you grow frustrated with the truth I am throwing in your face tonight. And may you stumble alone forever through the dark, empty halls of Hel for all of it."

Thor just stared at him. He shook his head, as if trying to dislodge something.

Loki hoped the truth of what he had said lodged in Thor's conscience like a piece of glass in his eye.

"The reason..." Thor cleared his throat and started again. "The reason I punished...tortured. The reason I..._tortured_...you tonight was because I had to be sure. I had to be sure you were bound."

Loki stared back at him, for once dumbfounded.

Thor spoke again. "I'm not saying the other is not true. But your actions indicated to me...in the immediate moments after you acted...that you had willfully ignored my instruction not to do anything I disapproved of. What was I to think?"

Loki remained silent.

Thor took a deep breath and continued. "I left you in the snow and in pain to see how much you would take before proving my fear right by doing something, anything, contrary to my explicit instruction to you. I knew there was a risk that if you were properly bound that you might be injured, or die, that you could do nothing to mitigate pain, or injury or death. I had to take that risk to be sure. I had to drive you to desperation to get you to reveal yourself."

Loki was put in mind of something he had learned about the Midgardian persecution of women they suspected of witchcraft. The woman was dunked into a lake until she drowned, proving her innocence, and if she survived she was condemned as a witch and burned.

"Unbound you are too dangerous, Loki. Surely you understand that. It would be as putting a star on the point of nova in the middle of the camp. In the middle of my kingdom. I would accept the risk of mishandling you if the consequences are mine alone to bear, but they are not. You could be a serpent in my bed, waiting for the right moment to reveal you still have your fangs. I will risk you murdering me in my own tent, I will risk you biting my cock off, but I will not risk you endangering my army or my kingdom or my people."

"I wish I had not done as I have done. But I knew no other way to prove to myself that you are bound."

Loki was too tired to deal with this, this infuriating oaf. Thor might have conceded his ill-thinking of the rights and wrongs of something important, but it didn't matter. Loki was not sure if he bodily fell towards sleep or whether he just slipped into its arms so suddenly that it felt like a physical leap.

One thought followed him as he fell. _I still have my fangs._


	11. Serpents

Thor felt uneasy, as if a burr was under his skin. He didn't think it was a result of his sleeping on blankets on the tent floor last night. After putting an unconscious Loki in his bed, he had decided to let the sorcerer have the space to stretch out his cramped body if he wished.

He had half-woken at the sound of Loki padding out of the tent around dawn, limping a little by the hesitation in his steps. He opened his eyes as Loki passed him on the floor, and saw that Loki's feet looked no worse for their ordeal. For the ordeal that Thor had put Loki through. He sighed, and made to get up.

Taking a towel, Thor walked towards the springs, and sure enough, there was the sorcerer submerged almost to his eyes, which were closed, his forehead showing bruises. His black hair was slicked around his head and he looked somewhat at peace. Moreso than Thor felt in himself.

"Loki."

Green eyes opened and focussed on him.

Thor forced himself to continue. "May I join you?"

"Do I have a choice?" Loki's head emerged fully from the water.

Thor sighed again. "There are other pools, Loki. Free of sarcasm and tantrums."

Loki grinned. "Indulging me in those is the least of what I am owed by you. Join me then, you oaf."

"Do not push me, sorcerer. I will not tolerate plain insults from you."

Loki grinned again, with a hint of glee. "Understood, my prince."

Thor rolled his eyes. "You may heal yourself if you have need of it."

Loki considered and said "No, I am well enough. There is only pain and stiffness left. I was taught to restrict the use of seidr to when it is necessary. To trivialise it would lead to misuse, or overuse, or dependence."

Nevertheless he created a small green flame in his damp heat-pinkened palm. "Sometimes it is necessary to simply feel it though. A reminder of it is comforting." The flame became a serpent, still green. "A reminder of what is in your bed at night, and now in your bath."

Thor looked at the image curling on Loki's palm. "I like serpents."

The sinuous green shape evaporated as Loki leaned back and stretched out his legs towards Thor. Green eyes blinked at Thor.

"This serpent's feet are _terribly_ sore."

Thor eyed him, but the sorcerer had closed his eyes again and sank back into the water, half submerging his face, the very picture of an indolent lord. _He even plays the aristocrat well_. Grumbling, Thor reached for the outstretched leg and began to knead a foot, which seemed already relaxed from the heat of the water.

He heard an underwater noise of smug satisfaction from the other man and he knew it wasn't just a response to massage. Grinning to himself, he let go of his worries and began to work on the sorcerer in earnest.

Later in the tent as they breakfasted, Thor turned to Loki and said, "I wish to end this war. Win it. As quickly as possible. With as few further casualties as possible. Will you help me?"

Loki stared at his breakfast bread. "I will gladly help you pack up your camp and taking your army home."

Thor made a noise of irritation.

"Do not toy with me. I will not leave this thing half-done."

Loki tore off a hunk of bread._ So you__ will not leave while my home is only half-destroyed_.

Thor continued. "Laufey will prosecute this war until he learns that his provocations will be put down, each and every one."

Loki could not exactly argue with that, knowing his father, but he did anyway. "This war was forced on us. You cannot believe that this...slaughter has been a just response to a failed raid by some renegades on a vault in the depths of your palace to retrieve what is ours anyway."

Thor turned to him, angrily. "Failed? The Casket of Winters was stolen from its place of safe-keeping in my father's vault by that raid, and good men died defending it. Killed by your king's order to steal back a war trophy that he had given up by treaty. We learned then the value of the word of the Frost Giants. The Casket no longer belongs to you, by a treaty your king agreed to. This war will not be over until we retrieve the Casket and this time, Laufey will kneel."

It took Loki a moment to absorb this. He could tell that Thor believed what he was saying to be true. Asgard no longer held the Casket.

The Casket that was the magical heart of Jotunheim, whose loss had lead to the slow withering of his father's realm, of his people and their prospects. If the Casket was truly missing, and not just beyond the reach of the Jotunn...there was no hope for his land. Loki considered, and asked a straight question.

"Are you saying that you believe that raid to have been successful?"

Thor nodded once, stiffly. "What mischief is this, sorcerer? Laufey holds the Casket no-one knows where, but he has it."

Loki was silent. Laufey-king had proclaimed the raiders renegades, young hotheads who thought to solve a complex problem with a simple solution. Loki had known this to be a lie, his father had been pulling the strings of these young warriors, manipulated their frustrations with the fate of their realm, subtly encouraged them to sneak into Asgard for the sake of the Casket.

Loki wondered if he knew the full extent of the lie. He had been told that the raiders had paid for their rashness by dying in the Weapons Vault of the palace of Asgard, the Casket utterly untouched. Odin had defeated them personally, and had fallen into slumber almost immediately after the battle so bravely and doggedly had the foolish young Jotunns fought.

Thor had been recalled from his seasoning on Midgard immediately, and enraged by the insult to his realm and by his father's condition, had declared war on Jotunheim and conducted it without mercy. Laufey had cried foul, claiming injustice at the suffering inflicted on his people because of the deeds of a foolhardy few.

Could Laufey-king have kept the full truth from Loki? Had Loki allowed himself to be distracted by annoyance at the clumsiness of the raid, of the decision made in anger by young fools (the same age as he...) who had not thought through the outcome of a raid on the palace of Asgard and Odin's wrath?

Loki had wondered at the time why his father had not sent him to carry out this mission. He stood a far better chance of infiltrating the palace and stealing away the Casket than the boys who had died in the attempt. He might even have been able to misdirect Odin by leaving an illusion of the Casket in place, although he wasn't sure he could have created the illusion of the power it held.

It would have been worth the risk, though, and far more likely to succeed than his father's actual plan.

Except he now thought he may not have known the true extent of Laufey's plan. Could one of those young fools have made it to the Casket and brought it back? It seemed impossible that they had managed to sneak into the Vault in the first place, never mind succeed in retrieving the Casket and bringing it back to Jotunheim.

He knew it was true. In his heart, he knew this is what had happened.

Laufey had lied to him.

Of course he had. Why had Loki not seen it? He had a talent for spotting lies as well as creating them.

What was Laufey's purpose in this? He must have known the consequences. Breaking the treaty, violating the palace...and not using the Casket when it was finally in his hands again. Provoking war, for what?

Loki had always wondered, and now the questions multiplied.


	12. Prey

Thor saw Loki grow thoughtful for a moment, and whatever mental calculations that quicksilver mind was making, they clearly troubled him. The suspicion as always rose that Loki was acting his part, projecting an image to suit whatever narrative he was currently presenting. However, Thor was sure that this time, the sorcerer's uncertainty was genuine.

"This is not a version of events that you are familiar with," said Thor, bluntly, to see if this garnered a reaction.

Loki came to himself, immediately flashed a devastating smile. "Trust me when I tell you there is no version of this story that would truly surprise me."

Now that had the ring of pure truth, but what was the sorcerer really saying? Unknown apparently to himself, his focus once again turned inwards, and he looked ...lost.

He snapped to, suddenly, and put the remains of his breakfast aside.

"I find myself a little ...overly energetic."

He seemed to be tense.

"With your permission, my prince, I will work some energy off before we leave the tent."

To Thor's no little surprise, Loki kneeled smoothly before him and reached for the ties of his breeches.

Loki felt an anxious wave of energy rush through him, and decided to put aside his concerns about Laufey and his plots for later, when he was alone and unobserved. _Laufey-King knows by now I am captured, surely. How do I fit into his plots? _Thor was watching him. Loki knew he would get little enough time to himself this day and so decided to relieve his tension in a way that might be of benefit to both him and his ...prince.

Speaking some platitudes to Thor, Loki knelt on both knees before him (he had had enough of kneeling for some time but this would not take long, he thought) and reached for his master's breeches. Before he could unlace the ties, a large forestalling hand closed over his.

"Why?" Thor asked.

Loki looked up at the Thunderer's face, puzzled by the compassion and curiousity he found there.

"Why?" he echoed. _Why what_?

Thor quirked an eyebrow. "Why do you service me in this way? Unless you really do intend to bite off my cock."

Loki showed white teeth in a sharp smile. "Even if I could, why would I destroy such beauty? Besides there are better ways to cause _you_ pain, my prince."

Thor frowned. Oh, Loki did enjoy needling him. And it was truth, too. What fun. Some were naive enough to think truth a pure thing. Truth could be as much an agent of chaos and mischief as lies were, just as potent a weapon.

"Let's say this is more about my needs than yours, my prince. I need a distraction, and what better distraction than your cock down my throat? It will do me for now. Besides, it is expected, is it not? I am a slave and you my master."

Thor frowned as Loki freed his cock and started to lick it with soft, stabbing movements. Loki could feel the tendrils of arousal thicken and flow in Thor's body.

"Play your game, Loki. I won't pretend to understand it. In the end, it won't matter. In the end, I will get what I need from you, what I want."

Loki tilted his head to catch Thor's eye, Thor's thickening cock in his hand.

"In the end, my prince, we are all dead." said Loki and bent to swallow Thor's cock as far as he could.

_In the end we are all dead_. A strange thought to accompany the sight and sensation of Loki's mouth lowering onto Thor's cock, which swelled and twitched in the wet welcoming heat. Loki was a vision to behold, that beautiful face no longer troubled by whatever riddles enwrapped that brightfire mind.

Thor supposed a tangible, physical task such as the one at hand, so to speak, was useful for a mind like Loki's, a grounding action. He thought perhaps he was beginning to understand the sorcerer a little, despite the short time they had spent together.

But that wasn't true, was it. They had had many long months together on opposite sides of the battlefield, feinting, striking, parrying, feeling each other out, learning each other's nuances, strengths and weaknesses. The sorcerer's power was not in his seidr, or at least not only, but in the speed of his thought, his adaptability, his resourcefulness, his unpredictability, his insight. _I may have bitten off more than I can chew_. Thor sighed dejectedly.

Loki looked up at him with an offended expression, mouth still full of cock. _ Am I boring you, my prince_?

Thor laughed, placed his hand in Loki's hair, stroking it, and said, "You have my full attention, Loki."

Green eyes glared and Loki sucked up and off his cock.

"I like attention and I like words. Talk to me, Thunderer. Tell me how you like it," he said, and went back about his business.

So Thor did. For as long and as filthily as he could while his thoughts were coherent enough to form even fragments of sentences.

Loki took care of himself directly after, still kneeling between Thor's knees, one hand on his own cock, one on Thor's muscular thigh. He batted Thor's offer of a hand away, but did not object when Thor's hand instead travelled to his mouth, wiping off the evidence of his seed on Loki's lower lip with his thumb and slipping it into Loki's mouth to be sucked clean, fingers warm along his jaw as Loki came. As Loki stood up afterwards, he thought perhaps the Thunderer was going to kiss him but he moved quickly aside to clean himself and fasten his ties.

The breakfast dishes had been cleared away without his noticing and Loki wasn't sure how he felt about having an audience, no matter how discreet, but he supposed it was only to his advantage that the camp gossip of his submission to their King be confirmed by a witness from the servants' pool. So what if they thought of him as the king's whore. 

He was a prince of Jotunheim and anyone who thought him dominated, despite everything, was a step closer to death at his hand.

The next few days were spent in camp, sorting through scout reports, tracing the weather, and riding out to accompany the scouts where they were sure of the land. Loki answered questions about the capital as carefully as possible, trying to give as little away as he could, but he could only guide the conversations so much.

It was challenging, seducing the Thunderer, but not entirely unpleasant. Thor made no demands in that regard, and accepted Loki's overtures if not with enthusiasm then at least interest. He was clearly intrigued as to why Loki would offer himself thus but did not press his advantage and demand or coerce.

Loki knew that to gain any advantage of the situation, he had to keep Thor's interest. He needed to be more to Thor than merely a body in which Thor found release. Thor would not respond well to flattery or overt seduction by his slave beyond the raw offer of pleasuring him, so Loki was forced to play it smart.

He did not appear to deliberately attract Thor's eye past their perfunctory intimacies. Perhaps once or twice in the day, though, Loki performed some small stretch or gesture which displayed the appeal of his grace and strength, and if his morning or evening dress or bathing routine was sometimes more teasing than usual, Loki remained completely innocent of Thor's interest. Loki's tongue might even have flicked enticingly across his parted lips for a moment during lunchtimes, ostensibly to clean a little smear of food from his mouth, Loki merely looking at the table or off in the distance the while, unawares.

Loki could feel the weight of the Thunderer's gaze all the same, waiting for more.

In less intimate interactions, Thor seemed to enjoy Loki's company and conversation, even Loki's more barbed responses. Loki found that he could keep Thor's attention by simply being his verbally mischievous self, which allowed Loki to relax somewhat. He did not have to create a performance just for the Thunderer's pleasure. If he was honest with himself, and he rarely was, Loki would have to admit that he enjoyed much of the conversation and the sexual teasing of Thor too, despite the circumstances.

He fell into bed each night, exhausted from the day, meaning to attend to Thor as quickly as possible. Loki found, surprisingly, that he didn't always want to rush through pleasing the Thunderer as one would an unpleasant task. There was a certain satisfaction in watching and feeling the Thunderer at the mercy of Loki's mouth and hands.

Thor sometimes made overtures to reciprocate, as he had the first time Loki had knelt to pleasure him, but Loki deflected him and took a cursory care of himself each time. Loki would not accept such a thing again from the man who enslaved him.

The thought had surfaced one night after Thor fell asleep, satisfied, tired and well-fed, that it would have been pleasing to end a busy day such as this with a lover or even a willing friend. This parody of companionship was beginning to make him feel lonely.

No matter. The days in Thor's company were tolerable and Loki's body pleasantly tired from horse-riding and sparring with Sif and the Warriors Three.

If Thor snored, Loki could not tell on these nights. He rolled Thor over on his side before he himself fell asleep anyway, so they were sleeping back-to-back, but he still woke each morning to find Thor rolled back, the weight of a large arm thrown across him and sometimes a hard cock pressed into the back of his thigh. Loki took care of each as necessary.

The final morning before setting out for Utgard was spent discussing tactics in approaching the capital, which was not far now. Another day resting here, and the camp would pack up at dawn tomorrow and be on the move within the hour.

Loki decided to see how far his seduction of Thor had gone. Could he press the Thunderer into doing something to please Loki? Something that Thor would also enjoy doing of course, to make him more amenable. A hunt might be a good test, and a way to start training Thor to agree to Loki's suggestions. The Asgardians did not rely on the Jotunn landscape for their food supply so they were not in the habit of hunting, but surely Thor missed such an activity.

Loki started as they lay together on the pallet, both their breathing beginning to return to normal after Loki's clever hands had brought Thor to a fairly impressive peak with slow, langourous attention to his cock, climaxing in some intense worship of its magnificence (and it was magnificent, really, Loki had to admit) with Loki's mouth. Loki could feel Thor's hands hovering above his head and momentarily fisting in his hair as he sucked and bobbed and worked his tongue, Thor finding it harder than usual to resist the urge to grab Loki's head and direct him. Loki did his damnedest to ensure that Thor did not feel the need; he did not want Thor to start face-fucking him, but he supposed it would still be better than actually being fucked again, even if not by much.

As they recovered, Loki rolled on his belly and faced Thor who was still breathing hard and staring at the ceiling of the tent. "Forgive me for being forward, my prince, but I would ask a boon of you."

Thor turned his eyes towards him, only a hint of suspicion marring the relaxed and distracted peace that follows a good sucking off. _Perfect_. "I understand that the camp receives its provisions directly from Asgard, and the bounty of Jotunheim does not appeal to Asgardian tastes, but do you think we could go on a hunt before we depart tomorrow? I find myself growing blind to maps and plans and would enjoy properly getting my boots on the ground outside the camp."

Thor did not say anything for a moment. "You're bored, is that it?" he asked, slightly incredulously.

Loki raised an eyebrow as if in disbelief at the very idea. "Of course not, my prince. You keep me very occupied and entertained in this tent."

Thor raised an eyebrow in return, and so encouraged, Loki continued. "A change of pace, perhaps?"

Thor chuckled. "I suppose we could. A little chase would do us good in the circumstances."

_We. Us._ Loki smiled a secret smile to himself.

Thor continued, "I will ask Sif and the Three if they will join us."

Feeling victorious, and wondering if he could use the opportunity to also consolidate the beginnings of a bond with Thor's companions, Loki thanked the Thunderer and then got out of the bed in a brisk manner, throwing a towel around his waist in preparation for bathing.

He did not glance back at the Thunderer to see if he was watching Loki as he threw open the tent flap and stepped outside, but he knew Thor's eyes were on him. _If you want me to throw a little wiggle in my walk, Thunderer, you're going to have to please me more than by agreeing to what you would wish to do anyway. Get thinking, my prince. _

Later, all six of them mounted up and headed out towards the hills where the remains of the herds of woolly mammoths scavenged. Loki roasted some ketch beans before they left and gave them a tot each before they climbed on their horses, explaining that it was traditional to start a hunt with a swig of ketch to sharpen the senses.

Thor grimaced, eyes watering and choked out, "An acquired taste, I assume."

Loki smiled. "Perhaps."

Fandral also choked on the hot bitter liquid and Loki took pity on him, topping up both their cups with water.

"We usually test new foods on Volstagg," said Fandral. "We considered testing your _ketch_ on the horses first but they're too valuable."

Sif inhaled the aroma first with real appreciation and took sips as the others quaffed like the boors they pretended to be. The banter went back and forth among the four as they rode on. Volstagg quizzed Loki on his hunting experience, which Loki was happy to share, to a degree.

Loki had hunted as a young prince, small though he was. He had found himself temperamentally and physically well suited to the endurance, patience and persistence needed, better suited than his younger brothers, bigger though they were.

He entertained Volstagg with tales of contests won and lost, pursuits that led to nothing but bickering and recriminations, spectacular pratfalls that could only happen at the height of a vigorous chase, and the occasional true prize won through skill and determination. Even the royal family had benefited from the bagging of a fine piece of game.

As an adult, one of his few official duties as third prince, a rare royal acknowledgements of his existence beyond that of son, he had led the first permitted hunt of woolly mammoth after their decimated numbers had been painstakingly restored enough for seasonal chase to begin again. Loki had ridden at the head of the tribes' leaders as they engaged in the first ceremonial hunt once the number of mammoths had been deemed large and stable enough to bear hunting again. It had been a moment of great pride for Prince Loptr of Jotunheim, firstborn of the king, Loki in his royal guise.

Loki had already adopted Aesir form as his own at that stage, but like most of his father's subjects, the tribes seem to accept that as one of the quirks of their King's eldest, Prince Loptr, Loki the far traveller, Loki their shadow prince.

Now here, Loki in his guise (real or assumed) of slave and royal companion found that once again, the hunt was on. Riding beside them did not feel too strange; it was in a way an extension of the hunt they had all pursued with Loki as prey and prize. A hunt to which he had finally fallen victim. He was both part of and apart from this hunting party. It was familiar; Loki was accustomed to being on the edge of things and in some ways preferred it. His former hunters largely seemed comfortable with his presence now, thinking him tamed, although Sif still looked at him with weighing eyes.

He thought she liked him well enough, and he would use that if he could. He liked her too, truth be told. All of Thor's companions seemed to reflect aspects of the man himself to one degree or another. Sif was intelligent and forceful. Fandral was indulgent in his blankets but disciplined on the battlefield. Hogun was thoughtful and focussed. Volstagg bluff and light of heart. All characteristics reflected in the Thunderer himself. All loyal to him, and he to them. Loki could use that, too, even as prey or prize. Even a domesticated pet could manipulate its caretakers.

They hunted down a brave young mammoth buck deep in the hills finally in the late afternoon. It looked as healthy as Loki could expect and led them a merry chase. Volstagg finished it quickly, ensuring it suffered little, and as they cleaned and dressed it, Loki thought of how he had been trussed up and presented in Thor's tent in much the same way by these same people, with his soul gutted instead of his body. He sighed. It did not seem like such a bad fate right in this moment, but that was the binding talking, he was sure.

Thor considered the sky as they made their way back to camp. The skies were darkening, not just for the lateness of the day. He could feel a storm brewing, one that would probably pass them by.

Hogun was the first to turn his head towards the nomadic camp to the west of their route. It looked colourful to Thor compared to the other settlements he had seen in this realm. Loki was tense beside him, unhappy, as Volstagg commented on its size. What did Loki expect, for Thor to ride in and trample and slaughter the women and children going about their domestic duties? _Why not_?_ You might have done that __unthinkingly not too long ago. __It was not the furthest thought from your mind just now_. He disliked that voice inside him. It sounded a little like the sorcerer's.

He gestured to his companions to retreat, and plotted a track around the camp to avoid notice. He thought he heard Loki exhale, and then inhale sharply. A Jotunn female had rounded the path and stumbled right upon them while returning to the nomad camp. She stood head and shoulders taller than Thor even on his horse, too stunned to move for a moment, and then turned and fled. Thor wheeled his horse around and made to run her down. He heard Loki shout, "For pity's sake, no!"

Thor grimaced and pulled his horse up fast. The others pulled up too, milling around in the confusion. He heard Loki mutter a curse as voices were raised in the camp and quickly quietened. A hesitant voice called out warily from a group that emerged from the darkness. "Loptr?" The speaker seemed to be addressing Loki; it sounded formal, like an honorific perhaps.

Thor looked to Loki, who sat stiffly on his horse. He cleared his throat and responded. "It is Loki. Just Loki. I am with... companions from Asgard. Keep your distance if you wish to keep your lives."

There was murmuring.

"Loki. You won't come to our camp? Surely you don't..."

Loki snapped, "_Do you see the colours I am wearing_?"

There was more than a bite of command to Loki's tone. Thor stared at him. Loki's posture was that of a king astride a warhorse. He radiated anger, authority and danger. Thor had not seen this Loki before, even on the battlefield.

The voice in the dark said, "You wear many colours, Trickster. Tonight, green and gold. Tomorrow, who knows?"

Laughter came from the group. Loki softened slightly and grinned despite himself, Thor saw.

Thor swung himself off Gullfaxi and started to lead his horse towards the group. Loki hissed, but swung off his own horse and followed. He felt the others wait, and heard the subtle sounds of weapons drawn.

"What is the name of the speaker for this group?" Thor asked. The group was silent for a moment.

"Before we exchange names, be welcome to our fires," came the reply.

Thor saw the speaker was an older woman, holding a hunting bow, but not in an offensive position. She was not afraid.

Thor looked back at his companions. They were tense. Loki was beside him, face a mask of calm. He wore that mask a lot, Thor realised. He looked directly at Loki, whose mask slipped slightly to reveal a pleading look in his eyes that did not sit well with Thor. Loki had not even pleaded for himself when Thor stripped him almost of his very self, could he really be so concerned for these strangers?

Thor made a decision. "Our food is yours," Thor said, gesturing to the meat wrapped on his horse.

The woman looked at Loki, who recovered quickly and gave a tiny nod.

"A fine hearth gift, my Lord," was all she said.

Thor beckoned his companions to follow.

They walked their horses into the camp and tied them up with the camp's hardy goats. Thor handed his portion of the mammoth kill to the cookpots and they followed the woman into the largest tents.

They sat on the floor, on old but well-made cushions. A water vessel and a wine vessel were placed before Loki and he bowed to the woman who now hosted them. He poured for her, then for Thor, then Sif, then himself, and then for everyone else at the table, all of whom bowed to him as he moved gracefully from setting to setting.

Their host looked from him to Loki, watched him watching Loki.

Before long, food was served, and it was not what Thor had expected. He was sure he had seen a crude stew cooking in the pots outside, it had smelled of tubers. Not unpleasant but certainly not like the riches that were offered up before him now. Grains, vegetables and thick slices of bread were served on large copper platters alongside bowls of meat, all flavoured with spices and herbs he could not identify but reminded him faintly of Loki.

Loki used the food implements as if they were extensions of his own fingers; the only of Thor's companions to do so well was Volstagg, although Sif did not embarrass herself.

Thor was briefly concerned about poison, that perhaps the communal dishes had something harmless to Jotunn added to it. He grimaced. _I've taken the leap, I may as well take the consequences_, he thought. He felt Loki looking at him, and as the sorcerer caught his eye, Loki grinned at him around a mouthful of meat as if he could read his thoughts.

General chatter arose as the meal went on, although Thor guessed it was more muted than usual. Some of the younger Jotunn eyed him with fear or suspicion or open curiosity, raking him from head to toe, he felt. Loki took care to keep the cups of wine and water filled. How did the woman know him?

Thor assumed that the sorcerer was as well known as a warrior among his own as he was among his enemies but this seemed more personal, as if Loki was a member of their kin. He offered the refreshments not as if he was a servant, but as if he was...a head of the household. Loki was at ease here, at least more so than Thor had seen of him so far. He doubted the sorcerer ever truly relaxed his guard.

Sated, Thor sat back as the youngest of the clan cleared the table. Small morsels of rich food appeared in front of each of them along with a tiny cup containing a hot black liquid. The Jotunn ate the dessert in tiny bites, chasing them with sips. "Now," said their host, sitting back on the cushions. "Let us exchange stories."

She introduced herself and her clan, names unfamiliar and strange on the Asgardian ear, and Thor was not sure he would be able to recall them if asked. Loki whispered to him that as the leader of this tribe, she should be referred to as _Madi_. Thor nodded. Thor realised it was time to introduce himself, and he hesitated, not out of fear or caution, but out of...could it be a little bit of shame?

His name was feared and hated in these tents, Thor was sure of this. While not long ago he would not have cared to think of how the denizens of this camp thought of him, it felt different after accepting their hospitality. He steeled himself and spoke his name anyway.

"I am Thor Odinson, and these are my companions."

He introduced them all, except for Loki, who seemed more like his own this evening than at any other time that Thor had sat beside him. The tent fell silent as Thor continued and by the end, he felt like he was speaking into a void. When he stopped, the silence stretched for a moment. The _madi_ shook herself and reached out her hands to Loki, taking his smaller ones in hers.

"And we do not need an introduction to Loki-," she started.

Loki interrupted her to scandalised looks from some of her people. "Loki, _Madi_. Just Loki. I am not who I was. I belong to my prince, Thor Odinson."

She looked at him with an expression that Thor had never noticed on a Jotunn before, sadness. "And who does Thor Odinson belong to, Loki?"

It was as strange and joyous an evening as Loki had ever spent. He could not shape events here and so he did not try. The efforts that the _madi_ and her people had made to feed them well made him desperately sad, he knew that this was a feast day meal they were offering him and the guests he had brought to their hearth. Their hospitality overwhelmed him and he could not bear to think too much on it. After the sweets, a space was marked out in the tent and music and dance began. He knew he probably looked ridiculous given that he was taller only than the smallest children, but as the music sang and skirled, he danced frenetically.

He did not specifically remember these people but they remembered him. It felt good, like he had roots here still. Given a place of honour at dinner, asked to perform the duty of the _Fadi_, as his father would if he had been paying court to his people. It felt good to belong, to be folded into the complex structure of his realm again.

Loki was astonished by the fragile peace that was holding. It felt like both side were stretched taut though, he could almost hear the humming of the tension. It would not take much to break it and for this beautiful illusion to shatter.

He wasn't sure how he felt about his people feting the desecrators of their land, especially as it was in deference to his presence. They trusted the rapscallion son of their King to have his reasons for being a companion to the enemy.

Thor had been surprisingly deft in his introductions, referring to neither his own title nor his origin, and he had not counted Loki as one of his companions. That could have been seen as an insult to Loki in the eyes of their hosts but he (and they, he was sure) saw it as a gesture of respect to Loki's unique position among them, as party to both groups and neither. Thor recognised Loki's place on each side of the boundary that divided them, at the edges. Loki knew Thor wasn't stupid, but he so often rode roughshod over other people, even his friends, that Loki was surprised to see that Thor could be subtle.

Loki sat and spoke to the younger members of the clan, delighted to hear that some remembered him in his finery at the great hunt, binding them to a mutual giggling conspiracy of silence over his true title. If Thor discovered tonight that he held a prince of the realm in slavery, Loki could do nothing about it, but he was finding the joy in the mischief of it.


	13. Godhead

Declining the _madi_'s offer of shelter for the night, all parties having felt they had pressed their luck as far as it might go, Thor and his companions (and slave) left to return to the Asgardian camp. Thor looked thoughtful as the _madi _once again took Loki's hands in her own and bowed over them, kissing the backs of his fingers and murmuring blessings to him. He had tried to demur the respectful gestures but she insisted and he could not truly refuse them. She in turn looked thoughtfully at Thor as Loki swung onto his horse and joined his party.

Loki could guess what she saw as her gaze lingered on Thor. Not the handsome Thunderer, he was sure.

Hogun announced that they were an hour's ride to their own camp. Thor beckoned Loki to ride beside him, and the others dropped back, silently. No doubt they had questions of their own.

"If I were to ask you who this _madi_ was to you, could I depend on you to spin me a pretty lie using the truth?"

He smiled at Loki, one of those which left Loki feel like he had been basking in warm sunshine.

Loki flashed a smile with teeth back. "I would not like to disappoint you with the _whole_ truth, my prince."

Thor shook his head, still smiling. "Tell me what you will, then, Loki."

Loki shrugged guilelessly. "The _madi_ is a stranger to me. We may have met before, I didn't discuss it with her. But I am known to some here because of the role I have had in the war."

Sif snorted. "We are lucky that tonight we did not join the pile of corpses you left in your wake on the battlefield, sorcerer. I don't know what you were thinking, Thor." Thor nodded an acknowledgement to her, but continued speaking to Loki.

"A stranger to you, Loki. One who recognises you in the dark, in an alien uniform. Welcomes her enemies to her hearth and gives them safe passage because you accompany them. Treats you as an honoured member of her kin, one worthy to grant water and wine to those at the table, of distributing the very breath of life. Gave up her finest food to please you. Tries to give you your rightful title, whatever that may be here. Shows humility when you deny her the right to call you by that title. Celebrates your presence with music and dance. Bids you farewell with love and reverence." 

Loki held his breath. He knew he would not be able to deny his royal connection forever, undefined as it was.

"Are you as a god here, sorcerer?"

Loki was stunned for a moment. Was Thor mocking him?

Before he could think how to respond to this nonsense, teasingly embrace it perhaps, mock Thor's own godhead, Thor laughed softly. But not mockingly.

Looking straight ahead, Thor continued. "I have thought it for some time, Loki. I had not truly believed the extent of your power until you cracked the binding cuff. Or the extent of your will until you defied me after I placed you in the snow, utterly bound and helpless, after you sacrificed your own self for your comrade. Of course, power and will and self-sacrifice do not make a god, but they are components. At worst, they make a exceptional seidrmaster, and I suppose potentially an exceptional general or king if directed wisely."

"But what I saw here tonight, was _belief_. The influence you have with these people, the trust that they placed in you, the worship they made...they sacrificed for you. They believed that the devil himself, Thor Odinson, would spare them because you walked by his side and willed it so."

Thor was facing straight ahead. Loki stared at his profile, dumbfounded. Troubled. He did not understand what game Thor was playing.

He swallowed and attempted a light tone. "And what, Thunderer, have you deduced my domain to be? What do I embody that these kind people would worship?"

Thor was quiet for a moment. 

"What do they call you, Loki? I could never discover your name, no matter how many Jotunn prisoners I questioned. I was told that you had no name, or too many, or it was unknown, but I knew that they _knew_."

Loki was silent. Thor allowed him the time to collect his thoughts.

Finally, he found himself able to speak. "My birth name is Loptr. But I am no longer allowed the name, except as an indulgence by ...Laufey-king. I call myself Loki. It's not a name exactly, but it is what I am called, the name I gave myself as a babe who had survived being exposed to die in the temple. It is who I am. My...the people...they call me many things. I was not allowed a true name so I think instead I gather bynames to me. It's not something I pursue. It just happens. The _madi_ might have called me Loki Skytreader or Loki Firestarter, or Liesmith or..." ..._Loki-Prince_. _Prince Loptr_, _Prince 'might have been' or 'never was' or 'forgotten'. _

Thor did look at him then.

Loki started to laugh, a little hysterically. "This is not the whole truth. The whole truth would take more than our time until back at the camp, probably. But it is all true. I cannot speak a word that is a lie by your order, my prince. So I admit I have been having fun as I am forced to be ever more inventive to avoid telling true." 

Loki paused and decided to see if this strangely calm and thoughtful Thor could be needled. "And I have certainly enjoyed wielding the truth as a weapon."

Thor flinched ever so slightly.

"But know this for plain truth, Thunderer: I have not lied in answer to your question. But if you insist on more, I will find a way to mislead you, if you like."

Thor's face was utterly peaceful again. He was refusing to be distracted.

"Loki, sometimes a true god is made, not born. Something intangible coalesces in an exceptional being and they are elevated, gathering influence and gathering names. People recognise godhead innately and worship those who bear it. My father was one, and knew it. He sacrificed himself to himself on the Tree of Life."

Loki thought of Odin and how he truly was a trickster to be wary of.

Thor continued. "I have never heard of a Frost Giant becoming a god but if you are the first, it would be fitting. These people who hosted us tonight would not think it amiss."

Loki shook his head. If Thor was being serious, he was confusing the respect due to a member of the royal family from their people with something...other entirely. He was not to know why Loki was offered such and was jumping to conclusions.

Though it was true neither Byliestr nor Helblindi had been received with open hearts by their people as Loki always had, Loki knew this was because the two crown princes were remote, austere, as befitting their station.

Loki had engendered fondness and warmth because he walked the edges of royal and something else, a prince yet not, Jotunn and more than simply Jotunn yet very much of Jotunheim. He was one of theirs who left but always came back. He was the runt child, the weakling who had survived the traditional abandonment in the temple; the fate of weaklings newly born.

He sometimes wondered if, given his royal station, he represented to them every one of their dead children returned to them.

That was his burden to carry, the cost of being born to the royal family, the cost of his unexpected survival on the altar where he had been left to die.

Thor was royal and god both, he probably did not understand the distinction.

Thor had called him 'an exceptional being'.

The camp lay ahead, and sleep.

After the horses had been handed over, Sif took Thor aside, waving the others away. Thor directed Loki to the tent. "What is it?" Thor asked.

Sif hesitated. "If what you said is true," she said slowly, "Then you have made an even graver error in binding him to you than you thought."

Thor nodded and thought for a moment before replying. "It was a mistake from the start. For many reasons. I should have listened to my gut."

Sif knew how he had struggled with the wrongs and risks of his plan. "It was always a risk-laden plan," she said. "At the time, it seemed worth it. We knew that one with his nature might find a way to wriggle free, and that bound he may prove more dangerous than unbound if his power and passions are forced down unnatural routes by the restrictions put on them. The mage said as much to me when she brought the cracked cuff back to the camp, she was _terrified_. And now it seems that you may have bound not just a powerful seidrmaster, but a nascent god besides? This could be a disaster, Thor."

Thor could not find a convincing way to disagree.

Coming back from a quick dip in the pools to rid himself of the grime of the hunt, he found Loki as expected already washed and stripped and in bed, his back to Thor as was his sleeping custom.

Loki's scar, slashed down his back, was revealed by the low-slung blanket. Loki knew that Thor found that mark fascinating, arousing even, if Thor was to be honest with himself. He was not sure if Loki had deliberately placed himself and the blanket to best display it to Thor in one of Loki's many fascinating little seductions.

"Loki."

Loki rolled over on his back, half-asleep and mumbled, "Have you not talked enough this night, Thunderer? Or perhaps my prince wants his pleasure of me."

He raised himself up on his elbows. "If you would just straddle my chest, then I'm sure I could..."

"Be quiet, Loki." Loki shut up, unable to disobey, and bit his lip in pure anger, meeting Thor's eyes with fury now.

"I don't ...you may speak. But please listen to me. I have something important to say."

Loki visibly trembled in his attempts to keep quiet. Thor found himself grateful that Loki was sparing him his vitriol tonight. Grateful that his slave decided to keep his temper under control!

"Thank you," said Thor, anyway. He lay beside the sorcerer, and turned on his side to face him.

"I don't expect you to say anything in response."

Loki raised an eyebrow. Thor grinned, but only briefly. He took a deep breath.

"It was a mistake to bind you to me, to enslave you. It was wrong."

He dared look at Loki's face. It was completely expressionless. "I am sorry for what I have done to you. I will make it right if I can."

Loki's gaze dropped, but not before Thor saw his eyes and face suffused with surprise and hope, and for a moment Thor thought Loki was going to kiss him.

After a moment, anger crept onto the sorcerer's face instead and he said, "But you can't make it right. The binding is permanent. I know the makings of this spell as well as you."

Thor took another deep breath. "I will make it right if I can. There must be a way."

Loki made a move to climb out of the bed, but stopped as Thor grabbed his wrist, not roughly and said, not unkindly, "Empty promises. Your words mean nothing, Thunderer. I will not be lulled by them."

Thor laughed at this -laughed!- and pulled him gently back into the bed.

"No, no. Peace, Loki, this is not a laughing matter, I am aware. Simply the thought of you being lulled..." He laughed again. "I have fought tooth and nail to control you while you remain yourself, and it is a battle I accept I will not win without destroying the game entirely. You refuse to even allow me to lull you in bed! Only once have you let me bring you to your pleasure, you guard even that from me. These are no lulling words I speak. The binding will be undone if it can be done. There is always a way."

Loki did not believe that to be true. Some things were just unchangeably knotted, locked, tangled. Had Thor never come across an impossible task before? Then this might be his first experience of failure.

Loki wished again that his fate was not intertwined with the Thunderer's whims.

Loki grimly acknowledged to himself that he was being unfair. It was no whim. Thor had clearly thought deeply about the binding before proceeding, and had changed his mind about his decision after the enormity of its wrong had been made plain to him. _Took him long enough_, thought Loki, bitterly. But Loki knew the attraction of denying the truth to himself and the pain of facing it in the end.

He could respect the Thunderer's honesty with himself in this.

"What of your commands to me?"

Thor grimaced. He spoke with clear regret in his voice. "Even if I were able to release you immediately, I would still put back the cuffs on you to stop your mischief from seriously harming my camp and myself. You are an enemy prisoner and make no bones about where your loyalties lie. Do not think I misunderstand when you declare that your serve your king. I know I am not the king you speak of, and so I cannot rescind the command that you must not harm me or mine."

Loki expected no more, but then the Thunderer surprised him. "You are no longer included as _mine_, if you wish it."

Loki gave him a flat-eyed look. _I am still your slave_.

Thor spread his hands placatingly. "You may do with yourself as you wish, now, although I hope you are never driven to harm yourself. All my other instructions you may ignore. You may do as you will, except for my instruction that you are not to harm."

Loki stared in disbelief. "Thunderer, you have just made life very difficult for yourself."

Thor closed his eyes in defeat.

"I know it," he replied. "Whatever tortures you choose to inflict on me now cannot compare to what I have done to you, of course. But I think you will enjoy your revenge far more than I have enjoyed imposing my will on yours."

Loki grinned a wolf grin, just as Thor opened his eyes. Loki lay down on his back beside him, trying to absorb all. Thor propped on his elbow, looking down at him again.

"For now, you are still my slave," admitted Thor. "A most troublesome one. I will not let you out of my sight. I would continue to have you sleep here, with me, and fool myself into thinking that it gives me some power over you. Will you stay?"

Loki looked at the tent ceiling, and considered. "I have no reason to leave your bed I suppose, and I do so worry for your peace of mind."

Thor laughed.

Loki could feel Thor looking down at him as Loki stared beyond the tent ceiling, still not sure of how to feel about the things shifting in his head. He was trying to accommodate the new arrangement. Thor's arm reached down along Loki's body, stroking his chest, his stomach, stroking over his cock and wrapping a large hot hand around it. Loki closed his eyes as Thor's head bent to his ear, the heat of his body closed in on Loki's, his cock laying snug and hard and hot against Loki's hip, his long hard-muscled legs entwined with Loki's own. 

Until now, Thor had not initiated any sexual activities, and any time he had made to reciprocate after Loki had taken care of him, Loki had deflected his efforts. Loki did not want a false intimacy or all too real submission with his captor, his _master_. Loki kept Thor sated by mouth and by hand to ward off being bent over and taken, but refused to accept the same in return. They were not lovers.

Loki lay down only for those few he chose to trust, and he did not fully trust the Thunderer yet, not really. He was beginning to accept though that perhaps Thor was not the kind of man who would abuse his power; he did not simply take without reason what was not freely offered. Loki supposed he was beginning to trust Thor somewhat, in this if nothing else.

So he lay beside the King of Asgard and carefully accepted his gentle but increasingly demanding attentions to Loki's cock and balls and thighs and ass and _ohh. _Thor moved lower down Loki's body, the heat of Thor's mouth and agile tongue licking hot wet stripes from his chest to his lower stomach as a strong gentle firm hand worked his cock into a pleasant, needy heat and a finger teased his entrance.

Despite their positions on the bed, Loki was sure he could yet feel the heat and promise of Thor's large cock radiating from the Thunderer's torso, and he sighed as he relaxed and gave in. Loki would, with reservations, accept Thor's gift of pleasure to seal whatever strange shift had happened in their relationship. _This changes nothing_. But as Thor moved back up Loki's body to watch his sorcerer's face as he came, while his fingers remained inside Loki below to teasingly stroking that sensitive bundle within him, before Loki's mind became one with the cresting waves of his peak, he knew to his core that something profound had shifted.

Thor watched him hungrily through his climax, and then after a few moments of attending to his own needs, added his pleasure to Loki's.


	14. The King

Loki woke before dawn to the usual weight of Thor's arm thrown over him, but as he was lying on his back instead of on his side, it felt heavier somehow. Loki threw it off as usual, as usual Thor's breathing changed slightly in response, and as usual he did not wake. Loki dressed in a cotton tunic and black leather breeches as quickly and silently as he could and prepared to test his new boundaries.

He flexed his seidr and twisted the world around him. As his view of the tent changed, he saw Thor open one eye, then lift his head, consternation plain on his face. Though he knew he may already have faded from Thor's view, Loki raised one hand in a sarcastic 'bye bye' gesture.

He skywalked through the camp and over the remaining territory between the Asgardian army and his father's capital, Utgard. As he approached the palace, he could already feel the binding spell tugging him back towards his master as strongly as if he had been wearing a collar. _Just as well I don't intend to stay long_. He descended into his own chambers, long abandoned but still apparently well maintained. They were much as he had left them, he thought.

Still skywalking, he entered his bathing chamber and checked on the snow-white crabs he had kept as pets in the ice pools. They, or perhaps their descendants, were still there, beautiful and almost glowing in the near dark. He entered his bedroom proper, and saw that his bed was kept freshly made, as if he were to drop in at any time. Well, he was dropping in, wasn't he? Not to stay though. He had no plans to sleep in this chamber again, even if his memories of it weren't bad, precisely. Lonely might be the word.

He heard the main door of his chambers opening, and his father's voice calling his name. Shaking his head, not sure at first if he wasn't imagining it, he skywalked to where his father stood in his bed robes, pulling the door shut behind him.

"Loki? I had wards set in case you came. Show yourself, boy."

Loki hesitated. "I am here, Father."

Moving into the room properly, he dropped to one knee.

"Greetings, my King."

"Stand, Loki. This is a family space. No matter how long it is since we have seen each other. How is it that you are here?"

Loki said nothing.

"It is true then. You are captured. A slave, truly? Have you been sent to destroy us?"

There was no fear on his father's face, just acceptance.

"No, Father. And I don't have a lot of time here. Where is the Casket?"

"Safe," replied Laufey, unshaken as always. "Bring the Thunderer here and I will return it to him. Peace will be restored."

Loki startled.

Laufey laughed. "I thought you had learned to better control your face, my child. Bring yourself along with the Thunderer. I will free you from his servitude if you can do this."

Loki purely gaped now. His father laughed again.

"There will be a cost to you, of course, but you have always been willing to pay. Come back to me in truth, my boy."

Loki felt himself be pulled way. He heard his father's word fade as he stepped back towards the Asgardian camp.

"The Thunderer will pay too, Loki. Dearly."

As Thor woke from the chill in his bed that always resulted from the absence of the early-rising sorcerer, he opened one eye to the familiar sight of Loki already dressed. He saw too late that the sorcerer had wrapped himself in seidr and was moving away despite standing utterly still.

As Loki vanished, Thor could have sworn that the sorcerer waved a sarcastic farewell. Was he dreaming? No, his bed was empty of Loki, still barely warm so he was not long gone, but had he really just _left_?

Thor felt Loki's absence bloom in him, an almost tangible thing. An effect of the spell, he assumed. He sensed that he could just twitch his fingers, in a manner of speaking, and his slave would return. He felt Loki's absence viscerally, though, but calmed himself as he realised that Loki, wherever he was, was feeling the same. He would not be long gone then.

Sure enough by the time Thor had returned from the baths, Loki was in the tent. He looked unsettled. His eyes flicked to Thor and away as Thor addressed him.

"Are you to tell me where you went?"

"No," replied Loki, bluntly.

Thor pressed on regardless. "Are you to tell me what has you upset?"

"I am not upset," came the answer.

Thor cocked an eyebrow. "The first plain lie I have heard you tell."

Loki frowned. "Did you call me back? Tug on my leash like the hound I am?"

"No, not intentionally," replied Thor uneasily. _Had he?_ "But I am glad you are back."

Thor stood after tugging on his boots, and the two men looked at each other.

Thor spoke first. "You have that look on your face. You need a distraction. Let us go to the practice ring."

Loki was irritated that he had allowed both Laufey-king and Thor to see his emotions written on his face. His father could always see through him, so that was not surprising, he thought, but Thor's insights into his state of mind made him feel exposed, vulnerable. Then again he had artlessly lied to Thor about his state of mind, and he wondered why.

Did he want Thor to see his upset? He did not trust Thor, the very opposite, he was sure. Loki knew there were few enough he felt safe with, and none were on Jotunheim. Yet here he was, allowing the Thunderer to offer him comfort.

The practice ring. No, that was not the sort of comfort he needed, he needed relief, a release. He was conflicted and confused, guilt married with anger and ...concern. Too many emotions for him to parse without something to focus on. His father's admission that he had the Casket had floored him, and he did not know how to feel about Laufey-king leaving his people to suffer while in possession of the object that could save them, or at least provide them with succour in the face of this war.

Why was Laufey not exploiting the power of the Casket for his suffering people? Guilt for doubting the King's wisdom began to eat at him, as did anger for the King's actions. More guilt. No, too tangled up. Concern rose for Thor, unbidden, and certainly unwelcome. Why should he care for whatever fate Thor had in store for himself? Perhaps Laufey's plan to liberate Loki from Thor was to kill Thor.

Loki thought not, to kill the owner of a seidrmaster would simply mean the seidrmaster became a slave without an owner, his power forever limited by his master's wishes, and possibly leaving the seidrmaster open to ownership to anyone who knew the art of leashing that collar. Laufey probably had sorcerers on his own leash who knew that art.

It suddenly occured to Loki that the best way for Laufey to liberate him completely from Thor and the best way to prevent Loki the enslaved from being a threat to Jotunheim was to kill Loki.

He hated this, this swirl of uncertainty and mistrust and betrayal. He _could_ trust Thor, he realised. Thor had never been anything but blunt about his motivations and intentions and desires. His hand crept to his outer left thigh and he pressed down on the scar there absently, savouring the brief pressure on it, and the burst of relief which came from it.

Loki had not felt this need in a long time. His life had been straightforward in the army of Jotunheim. He had been too busy fighting a slash-and-run war against an obvious enemy to get into emotional tangles. He pressed down on the scar again. And had a sudden horrible realisation.

He could not cut himself. Not even the relatively little it took to give him enough sharp sweet pain to relieve the inner turmoil. Thor had forbidden Loki from harming _him and his_. But he had also said _y__ou are no longer included as mine, if you wish it_. If you wish it.

Loki did not wish to be Thor's. He did not. He wished to be his own man again, and Thor had allowed him to reclaim as much of himself as it was possible for Thor to give under these circumstances. And yet Loki found his actions confined by his master's only instruction - _you will not harm me or mine_. What could this mean?

Thor saw Loki look inwards for a moment, and the sorcerer appeared almost horrified with what he saw. Sinking down on the bed, he stared at his hands. Squatting in front of him Thor asked with concern "What is the matter?" Loki buried his face in his hands. "Nothing," he said, taking a deep breath. Another lie. "We can talk of it later if we must. To the practice ring then." He stood and swept out as if he was the master of the tent and of the camp and of all that occurred there.


	15. There or Here

The next night, Thor was again almost affectionate, and Loki again allowed his overtures. Although Loki had often felt Thor's eyes on him in the tent, indeed encouraged it subtly, Thor had not made any move to fuck Loki since that first night for which Loki was grateful -_grateful! I really have been tamed, to some extent at least. _ Thor had accepted Loki's routine of first sucking Thor's cock and then bringing himself off while Thor watched, though Loki thought he might accept Thor's hand from now on if Loki was feeling generous. That night though, after a long day's ride towards the capital, Thor had gently pushed him down on the bed.

They were both still damp from bathing, and as Loki was about to reach for the towel around Thor's waist, instead Thor sat down beside him and had pushed Loki to a lying down position, so they were face to face with Thor bending over him. Blue eyes looked into green and Loki felt his skin goose-pimple.

At first he thought Thor was going to kiss him, and he stiffened, but instead Thor had leaned in and started nuzzling and licking Loki's neck, scraping teeth along his throat, biting gently along his shoulder. His hands were stroking Loki's sides, his fingernails scraping from the small of Loki's back along his ass to the back of his thighs.

Loki gave himself up to Thor's attentions, placing one hand in his blond hair and curling his other around Thor's broad back and shoulder. He closed his eyes and for the first time, leaned into the pleasure of feeling the beauty of the Thunderer's body, his heat and muscles and weight on Loki. If Thor had decided he wanted Loki tonight, then at least he intended to give as well as take.

Thor moved down Loki's chest and stomach, tracing circles with his strong agile tongue, for all the world as if they were lovers. Loki watched as Thor's mouth reached his swelling cock and his tongue swirled around it.

Loki closed his eyes again at the sensation and then opened them to the sight of Thor taking Loki's half-hard cock entirely into his mouth. Thor's eyes were smiling at Loki's expression. _What is the Thunderer at? Does it please him to play at domesticity? _

Thor drew his head back, releasing Loki's cock, and said "I can _feel_ you thinking, sorcerer. What can I do to quiet that quicksilver mind of yours?" With that Thor smiled a sunshine smile, turned back to Loki's cock, circled his tongue around the head and then to Loki's utter surprise, swallowed most of Loki's now fully erect cock in one go.

Loki gripped the sheets as Thor choked slightly, the hot wet tight tremors pulsing around Loki's cock as he took in the view. And what a view! Thor bobbed his head, taking in a little more each time, hands splayed on Loki's hips, upper body leaning on Loki's lower. Loki knew that there was a limit to what Thor enjoyed as a receiver of cock so he tried not to cant his hips. Thor's strong hands forced his hips to stillness, pinning him to the bed, the weight of the Thunderer's muscular body not allowing Loki to use the strength in his legs to lend any strength to his hip thrusts. Loki shuddered in pleasure.

Thor lifted his head again, a long suck before his mouth was clear of Loki's cock. He looked Loki in the eyes and asked, "Yes?".

Loki nodded dumbly. Another smile, and Thor bent back to swallow Loki's cock wholly.

As Thor started to move his head rhythmically, Loki leaned into the surrender. He could not move his lower body due to the sure, warm strength of the Thunderer pinning him to the bed, and felt the pure delicious pleasure of letting himself go in the hands of a strong partner. He raised his hands over his head, and without a headboard or bedpost to anchor himself, clasped his own wrists tightly.

Loki struggled to thrust his hips, pleasingly helpless against Thor's leverage and strength, and Thor laughed around his cock, causing Loki to groan. Thor seemed pleased at the unusual sound, sensing that Loki had finally relaxed his guard. Loki was too caught up in the moment to care. He was helpless under Thor's attentions, helpless to resist the other man's greater physical strength and his sexual mastery.

Loki gasped as Thor drove him to the edge, wanting not to just gasp but instead to utter lies, _no stop no_, _you can't do this to me_, wanting to pretend that the other man was hurting him by forcing him to pleasure, wanting to beg for mercy and receive none at the hands of a gentle brute. He knew that Thor would not understand Loki's bedsport though, and so bit his lip and allowed gasps to escape instead.

Thor understood enough to keep Loki completely restrained on the bed from the hips down as he brought Loki to completion. Sensing the change in Loki's struggles and the twitching of his cock as his climax approached, Thor moved his mouth off Loki's cock and replaced it with a firm, rough hand to see Loki through his orgasm. Loki came, melting on the bed, his seed spurting on his stomach and chest, Thor's hand accompanying him until he was done.

To Loki's surprise, instead of rolling Loki over and taking him, Thor stayed laying on his side, taking himself in hand. He slipped the hand of the arm he was leaning on under Loki's back so he could feel the warmth and weight and lean muscles of Loki's body, and began to work himself. Loki placed a hand on his face so he could feel as well as watch the Thunderer's expressions of pleasure as sensation built, and he quickly spilled against Loki's hip.

Thor moved to lie on his back beside Loki, and as they both calmed down, Loki was hit by a flash of mischief which came from who knows where, considering his condition. As Thor watched, Loki dipped a finger in one of the small cooling pools of his own come on his stomach.

He lifted the finger to Thor's mouth. To his mild surprise, Thor took his hand and slid the whole of Loki's finger straight into his mouth, sucking Loki's seed from it as he gently pulled Loki's finger back out. He smiled smugly at Loki as he licked his lips and lay back not a little triumphantly. Loki propped himself up on one arm and looked down at the Thunderer, and without really thinking about it, leaned down and found himself kissing Thor.

_I just wanted to taste myself in his mouth_, Loki told himself. It wasn't untrue, he knew, but as usual he was not telling the whole truth.

Much later, hours before dawn, Thor was woken by Loki, who seemed to be in a dream state, neither asleep nor awake. Thor usually woke slightly when the sorcerer would roll him on his side muttering about snoring, although he suspected the sorcerer's real motive was to ensure that he and Thor slept back to back, with as little intimacy as possible. Thor would eventually roll back in the night anyway and end spooning Loki, his arm draped over the other man.

This time, Thor woke fully to find Loki sitting up, utterly calm, staring into nothing. He could tell that Loki was not quite awake, nor fully asleep, as the vacant eyes moved in a parody of seeing. By contrast, controlled terror painted Loki's face.

"Am I there or am I here," he asked almost plaintively.

Thor spoke in a low soothing voice. "Loki, wake. You are dreaming."

The sorcerer sat stock still and whispered with that dead calm, "But if it's a dream, where will I wake up? What if this is a dream and I am there?"

"You're here, Loki. With me, with Thor, you're in the tent. Safe."

Loki's eyes flicked to his for a split second but he wondered if Loki had really heard him.

Loki continued to stare ahead and after a long moment muttered, "No. Not safe. But I am here and not there. I am here, and I am with you."

Thor placed his hand gently on Loki's forearm. "Are you alright?"

Loki looked at him, still with far away in his eyes. "Yes. I am alright. Go back to sleep, Thor."

He lay down and turned his back on Thor as was normal.

Thor lay back down also and thought about how this was the first time since their first meeting that Loki had used his name to directly address him. As he settled back into sleep, it occurred to him that he liked the sound of it from Loki's mouth.

Loki woke that morning feeling curiously distant from everything. He was on his back again, unusually, and Thor's face was buried in his neck, his arm thrown across Loki's chest. Instead of pushing it off, Loki hugged it closer to him. Thor's arm across him felt real, and protective. Loki knew there was no protection from the horrors in his head, but he could pretend for a little while in the warmth of the bed and the cold of the morning with the Thunderer's strong arm pressed against his chest.

The previous days exertions had tired him physically in a very pleasant way, as had the night's play. And play it was, he realised. He had not simply serviced Thor, and seen to his own needs in a functional way, pleasant enough and all as that had become for him. He didn't want to think too closely on what it meant, didn't want to add it to the tangle that he was keeping locked away in his mind for the moment. It was all distant.

Despite the physical tiredness, he was on edge. He had enjoyed the brief surrender to Thor, but he needed something more for true release.

After taking care of Thor, who had enthusiastically embraced a second round for himself, Loki had been on the verge of falling asleep with the not unpleasant taste of the Thunderer's seed in his mouth, when his thoughts rose fresh and hot in his mind, causing him to jerk bodily in the bed. _Laufey. The Casket. The Binding. His brother. Thor. His people.  
_

Thor had murmured something into his hair and held him more tightly but Loki found his hand snaking down to his thigh and digging his nails in. There had to be some way to give himself what he needed. Thor was deeply asleep, but Loki had known there was no true rest for him there for that night at least.

He drifted off eventually, and remembered nothing but dreams of walking through large empty rooms.

Awake now, the scar on his thigh ached a little, and he almost hurt all over with need he felt for the ache to become a sharp, bright pain rather than a deep dull one. He was not able to find release in his usual way, he had accepted that. Not with Thor's restrictions on harming _him or his_. Even his anger at that felt distant.

He considered pursuing some form of release in the volcanic pools nearby; a pool with run-off from the glacier might spear the sensation of tiny daggers into his skin, a searing hot pool might light his skin up with agony that might finally free him from this internal pain.

No, he probably would not be able to sink into the water without his master's permission for fear he would really harm himself, and anyway he was not in control enough of himself to be sure that this was not reckless, stupidly dangerous.

He would have to ask Thor for help. For permission. Blast him.

Thor shifted slightly, and Loki felt the familiar small stretches and snuffles that signalled the Thunderer was to rouse. He did not throw off Thor's arm as was his usual practice, and waited for Thor to speak. After grumbling a bit, with a noise of mild surprise for finding Loki hugging Thor's arm to his chest (and Loki had to admit, he _was_ hugging the man's damn arm), Thor moved so his body was half-covering Loki's own, head still in the crook of Loki's neck, legs completely entangling Loki's possessively.

"So," he said sleepily, mouth close to Loki's ear. "It is not just the binding that bothers you this morning I think. If I asked, would you tell me?"

Loki did not have the capacity right then to wonder how the Thunderer had sensed this. He took a deep breath.

"I have... need of something from you."

Loki felt Thor take a moment to waken himself fully and sit up.

"If I can give it to you, I will," he answered, looking down at him.

Loki took another deep breath.

"If...I were to tell you that an old wound was bothering me, and I needed your permission to get relief, would you give it to me?"

Thor paused. "I don't understand why you would need my permission."

Loki pressed on while he had the courage.

"To get relief, I need to inflict some harm to myself. Nothing dangerous. But ...I am forbidden from harming what is yours."

Thor was silent.

"'I am asking you for a little trust, _my prince_. Will you give me permission? I will not be in any danger. I will not be violating the truth of your command to me."

Thor spoke slowly.

"Loki. I released you from the command that forced you to see yourself as one of my possessions. I know this is more in spirit than in fact, given the binding, but you do not need my permission for...for this thing."

Loki refused to meet his eyes but he answered Thor as honestly as he dared.

"Nevertheless, the part of me that chooses whose I am still considers me to be yours."

Thor was utterly still for a moment.

"Is this a thing of the binding? Or..."

Loki suddenly sat bolt upright in the bed.

"I DON'T KNOW!" he spat at Thor. "I don't _know_. Give me what I need, Thunderer, or be done with it. Be done with your pretense of my freedom. I swore I would not allow myself to be taken little by little, that I would spit in your eye and force your hand to properly break me rather then feel myself slide and crumble away, and yet here I am. Give me permission to harm myself or cut this thread that is _me_ for once and for all. Aghh, I cannot bear this, any of this!"

Thor was astonished, no less so than when Loki had ordered him to finish the enslavement ritual the night of Loki's capture.

"Whatever you need, Loki, you may have it."

He suddenly realised what he had said, and cursed himself.

If this was one of Loki's scenes, one of his mischievous roles he created as a means to and a distraction from his goal, Thor had just handed him a carte blanche, permission for him to do-as-he-will on a plate, hadn't he?

A shot of fear of what the sorcerer's next action would be raced through Thor, wrapped though Loki was in Thor's bedsheets, hair tousled from a night of intimacy, only moments ago having embraced Thor's sleeping form to his own body.

Instead of laughing in his face and making the beginnings of havoc, though, Loki started to sob. Thor didn't think it was possible for him to be any more astonished by the morning's turn.

"Get it off me, Thor, get it _off_ me. I cannot bear not knowing what is me and what is _it_. How can I know whose I am when I am caught between you and it, and a third thing which is you _both together_, that blasted binding and you together."

Loki was looking him straight in the eyes now, distraught, tears pouring down his cheeks, body twisted in pain.

Thor reached slowly to wrap himself around Loki, not sure if his touch was welcome, and when Loki did not resist but leaned into his embrace, Thor did what he could to comfort him.

He did not think he had the right words, so Thor risked saying what he felt. He had already been impulsive this morning, perhaps it was time to make a leap of faith. Foolishly, perhaps selfishly, Thor decided to tell his sorcerer what he wanted from him and hoped for them both, despite everything.

Thor decided he would accept hate and condemnation and pity from the sorcerer if he had to because of it, because what he said was the truth.

"I will not let you go if I can avoid it, Loki I would have you stay if you agree to be mine in truth. You will be rid of this binding at least if I have to spend the rest of my days finding a way, but if it proves impossible then..."

He could not, could he? As King of Asgard, he could not, but he could change that. Abdicate his role, turn his back on his family, his people, his realm. It was a high price to pay for what he had done for Loki, the highest, but if that was the price, so be it.

He had committed a terrible crime, more than one, and he would sit in judgement of himself if he must.

He took a deep breath and continued. "Then I will find a way to bind myself to you, so you are my equal again. I am yours for the taking if you want me."

Loki coughed slightly in his tears, and looked up at Thor, and started to laugh. "Oh Thunderer. I could have played you like a fiddle had I really tried. You are in over your head, my prince."


	16. The Binding

_Whatever you need, you may have_. Loki's head was beginning to clear a little, and he reached for calm as well as he could. He had provoked Thor into saying some very foolish things. _I am yours for the taking_. Those words were...binding. Not irreversible though. Thor could change his mind if the whim took him. He left the tent as quickly as he could without losing his dignity.

Thor watched and said nothing.

Afterwards, a thin rivulet of blood on his thigh, he felt better and worse, as he expected. The pain crested and had brought some peace, a brief tangible focus for the turmoil within. He had taken his time and been careful but there was always the risk of cutting too deep, and especially now, the risk of a latent desire to do so. He no longer wanted to die, if that desire had ever really settled on him even in the depths of his despair at his enslavement, but he knew he walked a tightrope.

As a few spots of his blood dropped into the cold dusty soil of Jotunheim, his shame almost matched his relief. This did him no good. It brought temporary relief at best, but it changed nothing else. Sighing, he realised he would not be able to do this to himself again while the binding mastered him. He did not truly need this.

He needed his freedom, but the one who took it could not return it. Loki's freedom was no longer Thor's to give back. The binding had them both bound tight, made slaves of them both in a way. Not in the same way, of course. Thor was not finding himself on his knees every night in front of Loki for fear of being fucked instead. 

But Thor had gone on his knees anyway, for all intents and purposes. Loki shivered slightly at the memory of the previous night. Even on his knees, Thor was masterful. Loki skirted the surface of the brimming thought that this is what he needed. That was the binding's thinking, surely. Not Loki's, surely. He did not want to truly submit to Thor.

No matter that Loki had found the beginnings of peace in surrendering him.

No matter that perhaps Thor could give Loki what he needed.

Thor was not the only one who had to face uncomfortable truths.

Loki thought he understood now how the binding worked. It was not just a blunt instrument, bending the will of the slave to the master. That would eventually lead all too often to a broken slave, a waste of the magical resources invested in creating a valuable tool.

There were many small instances where he found himself content when he had no wish to be, had found himself bending himself to Thor's desires far too readily, too accepting of role as companion, too ready to trust Thor.

However, in different circumstances, these were all things that might have come to pass anyway. Loki knew he desired Thor. That was not because of the binding; Loki had desired Thor the very first time he had seen the princeling-king in his tent while planning to assassinate him.

But the binding whispered to Loki's soul what Loki wanted to hear, and Loki found himself acting on his desires, finding contentment in the company of his enemy, and finding relief in trusting him too. The desire to be Thor's was probably Loki's own desire, manipulated by the binding. All the better to make a compliant and happy slave. He couldn't be sure though.

It was maddening.

It was becoming less maddening.

And surely there was a quid pro quo for his master. Was the binding was manipulating Thor too to make him a more palatable master, all the better to keep his slave compliant and happy? Loki was sure Thor desired him too, not just as a body to make use of and in which to find release. _ An exceptional being_.

He remembered the flicker of interest in Thor's eyes when they had first met, Loki disguised as an Asgardian soldier, Thor his target for assassination. And while Thor enjoyed being master in bed, for sure, he also seemed to desire not just to dominate Loki but to enjoy him and be enjoyed. When Thor wasn't simply accepting Loki's services, he was enthusiastic and sensitive -and rough when rough was right.

Well, somewhat rough. Could definitely be rougher. Loki would have to take Thor in hand and train him in this.

Thor had shown compassion occasionally. Bizarrely, this morning he had told Loki that Loki could have what he needed. Foolish in the extreme. Again, Loki thought that all of this generosity was innate to Thor, but was it manipulated and exploited by the binding to draw them closer together?

And... Thor had offered to bind himself to Loki if the binding of Loki to Thor could not be reversed, so they could be equals. This was plain madness.

And yet Loki believed him in this.

But the reality was that it was impossible to know while the binding forced them together.

By the time Loki returned to the camp, the ache in his thigh sharp and pleasant, the tents were already almost packed up. The Asgardian army was on the move again, this time lay siege to Utgard itself, just a few days march ahead. The war was coming to a close.

Loki thought of Laufey-king and his claim to have the Casket. His claim to bring peace once Loki brought the Thunderer to him. His promise to free Loki from the binding and to make Thor suffer. Loki's dearest wish was for the war to end. Anything else, he decided, would be a bonus.

Nevertheless, Loki wish he knew exactly what his father planned. He suspected Thor would pay a great price if Laufey-king succeeded.

If it was as great as what Jotunheim had paid, then that was only justice. 

Thor was nowhere in sight, which made him nervous. Loki's main protection in the camp was the patronage of their King, enemy as Loki was of every single soldier here, including the King's own four companions, whose eyes flickered to him as he passed with expressions ranging from suspicion to disinterest. He sensed the path of Mjolnir and Thor skyward, and glanced upwards and west. The sky was heavy there, clouds threatened to lumber in the direction of the camp and its intended route. Thor must be intervening in a storm which would have hampered the march to the capital.

Loki was no weather mage, but the Frost Giant that was an intrinsic part of him could feel the ice of the clouds of the potential storm crackling and sparking under the Thunderer's touch. He sensed Thor's returning approach before he could physically see him, hurtling from the sky in a Thor-sized storm of ball lightning and raw chthonic seidr, a breath-taking vision of elemental power and masculinity. He seemed too big even from far away.

Thor slammed down to earth beside Loki, looking if not exhilarated by his exertions, then certainly well-satisfied by them. He turned to face his work as lightning leapt across the sky far off and the clouds started to break up. The weak sun in the east cast a shimmering Jotunn rainbow of blues and green and purples on the edge of red between the clouds of the fading proto-storm. Without thinking, he reached out and brushed Thor's seidr as it churned around the Thunderer, and flicked the elemental component of his seidr, drawing on his Jotunn core.

Thor's eyes widened as he felt Loki stroke his connection to the dying storm to the west of them. He followed Loki's strong, sure caress along his line of sight, invisible though the touch was. The billowing western sky shifted and glittered.

The rainbow-like hues of red-purples and green and blues bloomed for a moment in the sky, refractions of the Jotunn sunshine in the points of frozen rain, floating like the northern lights of Midgard. Thor watched Loki as the sorcerer gasped at the sight, caught up in the unexpected intensity of it. His face was transformed by a bright joy that lit it from within; he looked younger and lighter for a few moments.

Suddenly lightning flashed there and the lights shivered and disappeared in an explosion of cracking ice particles. Uncountable points of skyborne ice were shattered by the lace of of lightning bolts. The storm dissipated entirely in a spray of strangely beautiful muted greens, blues and reds across the western sky. A moment later, a roll of thunder swept over the camp to some cheers from the soldiers, but Thor realised that many within the camp were simply staring at the phenomenon.

Loki turned to him suddenly, looking abashed. Then his expression flattened to utter blandness, and he turned towards the horses to ride.

That evening, Thor found Loki in a pool, only his closed eyes and forehead visible above the steaming waterline, damp dark hair gleaming in the moonlight. Thor slipped in beside him. Loki opened his eyes and sat up slightly straighter, taking a deep breath. Thor said nothing and stared at the clear sky. After a few moments, Loki murmured "So, if I fell asleep here, and began to drown, would your command that I cause no harm to your property kick in and force me awake or do you think I might quietly slip under?”

Thor did not reply for some time. "Once this war is over, I will do as I promise and find a way to release you."

Loki raised an eyebrow, and did not mention what might happen if Thor failed in this. Instead he said "So I find myself praying for the fall of my realm to the invader sooner rather than later so I myself can be free. An uncomfortable position to be in, you understand."

Thor was losing patience. “Loki, we are done with this conversation. If our positions were reversed, what would you have done with me? At the very least, you would have removed my hands so I could not call Mjolnir.”

Loki snickered. “Ah, so in this scenario, you are not exactly you, but instead Thor, god of hammers?”

_Aarrrggh._ Loki should have bitten out his _tongue_ before saying that. Had he completely lost the ability to think before speaking? He could not blame just the binding for making him grow careless in the familiarity of his captor's company. There was no need to push Thor down the road of discovery, much less accompany him. Let Thor continue to believe himself dependent on Mjolnir as a focus and channel for his power.

And Loki did want to accompany him, he realised. He could feel the mutual joy that would be brought by them two together working in congress, Thor taking ownership of his domain with Loki's guidance and as yet _inconceivable_ possibilities of their power in tandem. The Nine Realms would tremble at their partnership with trepidation and awe. He would forge Thor anew and Loki in turn would ride the storm...no. He knew his duty. No matter how rewarding it might be to reject it.

Loki saw Thor's expression, puzzlement and concern, and carefully blanked his own. Norns, had he also forgotten how to control his features? Before long he would be as easy to read as this sunny-faced oaf. All right, enough. Enough taunting of his master. Thor had said he would make things right. Loki did not think it was possible but he believed Thor when Thor said he would try.

More of the binding, probably. Loki was beginning not to care. He would take what he needed. He was going to get some of what he needed from Thor tonight.

Thor saw the long thin red scar down Loki's left thigh as Loki left the pool with an unexpectedly sweet smile. Thor was fairly sure that smile was to cover up the strangeness of the expressions that had flitted across the sorcerer's normally impassive face. Or perhaps Loki actually meant it for a sweet smile. He rarely had only one reason for doing anything, so Thor wasn't going to take any bets either way. Had he thought that Thor would punish him for calling him 'the god of hammers?' Loki had called Thor much worse.

Thor stayed to soak a little longer and thought again about the fresh scar. Why had the seidrmaster not healed himself? It looked like he had been sliced by a blade, not deeply, but enough to hurt. He wondered if this was the wound that the sorcerer had spoken of that morning...but it was new, not old. How would Loki would respond if he asked...not well, he surmised. The sorcerer didn't appear to be hiding it but Thor was certain he would not welcome attention.

Loki seemed much calmer now than this morning. He had been flirtatious at times during the day on the ride, had been a good conversationalist with everyone, and had stopped taunting Thor at the pools when Thor remonstrated with him, which was surprising. Flirtatious, charming _and_ acquiescing to Thor's request for respite from his barbed tongue? He couldn't guess what the sorcerer was playing at.

A seductive Loki Thor was familiar with, a sweet Loki he was not. They had not actually fucked since the first night. Thor knew his attentions would be unwelcome and did not press the issue, dreading as he did the memory of the sorcerer's face as he had told Thor he would not be forced to look at Thor as Thor raped him. Nevertheless, Loki had, for reasons of his own that Thor did not entirely understand, initiated a routine of pleasuring Thor at least once a day since.

The first time had obviously been a challenge that Loki decided to bring to Thor, attempting to violate the boundaries of his permitted behaviour, or trying to force Thor to acknowledge that he feared Loki, bound or not. The experience had indeed sent thrills of legitimate fear but also intense arousal through Thor as Loki nipped at him with teeth as well as tongue while Thor prayed the binding held firm.

Thor accepted the challenge, knowing that the risk of Loki dismembering him was half the thrill of feeling Loki's mouth on his cock at that moment. He thought he might have turned the sorcerer's challenge on its head by reciprocating, and had taken much pleasure in making the sorcerer beg Thor to make _him_ come. Loki had no shame, and Thor admired that and feared it both. Even with the binding, he had so few ways to control the sorcerer.

In the nights since, Loki had brought Thor to completion quickly with his mouth, probably to speed up the time until he could just lay down himself to sleep, but also probably to lull Thor as he had tried to lull the Asgardian soldiers with his show of being beaten down by Sif. Norns knew how many other motives Loki had for his actions.

Thor grimaced as he acknowledged to himself that probably Loki hoped by keeping Thor sated with his mouth and hands that Thor would not insist on fucking him again. Loki had taken his pleasure in the violation that night, which confused Thor, but he suspected it had been an act of defiance, or something else that Thor did not understand, rather than an act of submission.

Thor had not insisted or even invited Loki to pleasure him in the days that followed, but nor had he refused once Loki took his cock in hand. Thor's offers to reciprocate with his hand had been more often turned down. Thor fell asleep each night pleasured, warm and content, woken slightly each night as the sorcerer rolled him over on his side and turned his own back to Thor, muttering about snoring, and again in the morning when the sorcerer threw off Thor's arm which had inevitably snaked over him again in the night as Thor rolled back over and spooned into the other man.

Thor knew he had pulled down some of the bricks of the wall that Loki had thrown up between them after Thor had acknowledged the wrongs he had done to Loki. That night, Loki had allowed Thor to pleasure him with his hand, and their bed-games had become somewhat reciprocal, although Thor knew that Loki only allowed Thor so much intimacy.

How had it come about that Loki, the slave, and the one who seemed naturally submissive in bed if not in anything else, was the one who dictated their play? Thor smiled to himself at the contradictions that laced his relations and his relationship with Loki, and acknowledged to himself how much he enjoyed Loki's control of him. Acknowledged that Loki _did_ control him, through surrendering to him. He certainly did so more skillfully than Thor controlled Loki.

Thor left the pool musing on the nature of control and submission to find Loki stripped and laying stomach down on the bed. When Thor approached the bed, Loki shifted to all fours suggestively before sitting back on his heels, looking over his shoulder at Thor.

"You are ready for bed, my prince?" Loki openly appraised Thor in a way he had not done before as Thor blinked at the sight of Loki's beauty, presented to him for the taking. He grinned, gratified at Loki's eagerness, and stripped himself quickly. He didn't bother to stop to ask himself why this sudden shift in their sexual dynamic. The sorcerer was willing, so why not?

Thor wanted it quick and hard, and decided to take his own pleasures first and take care of Loki on a second round. He prepared Loki quickly, then pressed in slowly at first to compensate for his selfish intentions and to ratchet up his own anticipation before quickly shifting gears once he had bottomed out on the other man. Loki seemed eager all the same but did not touch himself as Thor pounded him mercilessly. Thor was too caught up in his own pleasure to regret it too much when he accidentally put pressure Loki's injury as he groped Loki's thigh, causing him to shudder.

Thor muttered a quick apology which the other man dismissed with a shake of his head.

After a few more moments of fucking into a panting Loki, Thor pressed down on the injury a second time, selfishly, because he had much enjoyed the sensation of the other man's shudder and was rewarded with another, far more intense, and a deep groan from Loki.

Suddenly horrified by himself, Thor slowed his thrusts and stopped as the reality of what he had done hit him. _You are a vain, cruel, selfish boy_. "Are you..."

Loki turned his head so he could look Thor in the eye and Thor was shocked by the beseeching look he saw there.

"By the Norns, finish!"

The words were angry but the tone was desperate. Thor resumed thrusting, putting his self-loathing aside until he could examine it properly. Loki dropped his head down and groaned again and Thor saw him move his hand. Thor knew that Loki was reaching for his scar, not for his cock, and sure enough as soon as Loki's hand brushed his thigh, he shuddered again and Thor knew he was about to come hard.

Thor reached around and grabbed Loki's cock as it began to spill and worked him through it with difficulty, straining to delay his own peak. He could feel Loki relax as he came down, collapsing into a boneless mass beneath Thor. Thor stopped thrusting and followed him, still locked together pelvis-to-ass, Loki's own fingers still on his fresh scar. _Pain. Controlled pain. __Now I know what makes the sorcerer stop thinking_.

He waited until Loki's breathing slowed, and tried to judge if he had fallen asleep. Gloomily he considered that he might have to take care of himself given his partner might be unconscious, and prepared to gently pull out of Loki's ass. The sorcerer moved slightly beneath him as he did so, and murmured, "_Finish_, Thunderer. I want to feel your seed fill me tonight."

Thor felt a pulse of pleasure run down his spine and into his pelvis at these words. Loki made a half-hearted attempt to brace himself with his hands to give Thor traction, so Thor pressed one hand over the sorcerer's long clever fingers and interlinked his own with them, circled his free arm around Loki's waist and angled his hips so he could finish, using the sorcerer almost as a doll as Loki relaxed again.

Loki was neither small nor light and it took strength and balance for Thor to continue fucking with depth and speed. Thor revelled in his physical power, and added to his pleasure was Loki's total surrender. Thor found himself reaching a peak almost unexpectedly, Loki gripping his fingers as hard as Thor gripped his while he came.

He thought he heard Loki sigh as Thor felt himself flood Loki's insides, and the sound of satisfaction and calm from the sorcerer prolonged his peak.

He thought he gasped the sorcerer's name.

Thor lay them both on the bed after, Loki face down, Thor on top of him, and did not roll off Loki. He knew somehow that Loki wanted to bear Thor's full weight that night.


	17. The Big Lie

Loki's ass was a throb of satisfying dull pain. His ass really _hurt_. He would be feeling it all day, a reminder of the Thunderer's enthusiasm. Oh Norns, riding might be a problem. It would be fine. It wasn't the first time he rode with discomfort on a horse, nor was it always so welcome as today's. Loki woke slowly, as if he was emerging blinking but content out of a comfortable safe cave. It felt later than he was used to waking. He had slept better this night than he had done in some time.

As he woke and became aware of the rest of his body, he realised that Thor was almost completely pinning him face-down to the bed. Thor's warm, muscled body was in near exactly the same position as it had been when they fell asleep last night, except as usual, Thor had managed to throw a large arm across Loki's chest so that he was pulled flush against the Thunderer's chest.

The thought of staying thus for a while was appealing but the sun was already up, and Loki did not want to be dragged out of bed by Thor's companions. He attempted to roll the Thunderer off his back, and on the third go managed to wake Thor enough to get him to shift his weight. Muttering about over-muscled oafs, he moved to stand when he realised Lady Sif was in the room with her arms folded.

Loki guessed his presence was unwelcome to Sif, so he wrapped himself in a towel and made to leave the tent as Thor's sleepy voice rumbled incredulously, "Did you call the King of Asgard an overmuscled oaf?"

Loki replied, "You must have been dreaming, my prince."

He offered Sif a bow as he exited the tent and she returned a slight nod of the head. Thor was in trouble, Loki guessed. He hoped Loki himself was the cause of it.

"Good bedsport last night?" Sif raised an eyebrow at Thor as he gave her his best morning smile, one eye still closed.

"I hope you have not forgotten who he is or how he came to be in your bed, Thor."

Frowning, Thor sat up properly and did not respond for a moment.

"How could I have forgotten?" he asked. "Loki reminds me daily. Hourly sometimes. It is a burr under my skin. What concerns you, Sif?"

Sif hesitated. "The two of you painted a very intimate picture in the bed just now. I worry he could manipulate you, despite everything."

Thor laughed heartily at this. "The only thing I am sure of with Loki, Sif, is that he is certainly manipulating me. How do I know? He is breathing, isn't he? It's his nature. I make my own decisions, my Lady, always, and am capable of being quite foolish even without Loki's prompting. Never fear that!"

Sif rolled her eyes. "One of your foolish decisions was to sleep late this morning, my King, because your mother is visiting the camp, and is demanding an audience with her slugabed son."

Thor leapt out of the bed and started scrambling for clothes.

As Loki returned to the tent, unsure if he should enter, Thor erupted from inside and dashed past Loki without a word but wearing full ceremonial armour. Sif followed at a more normal pace, smiling until she saw Loki.

"Is something amiss?" he asked, wondering if Sif would share with him whatever had got Thor in such a flap.

"A visit from his mother, the Queen," Sif replied.

"Queen Frigga," breathed Loki. A woman admired throughout the realms, the woman who tamed Odin Borson.

Sif stepped close to Loki and looked him dead in the eye. "I do like you, Liesmith, but mark this as true. Whatever manipulations you are weaving around Thor will pay you no profit. The moment I find a reason to get you out of Thor's tent and into the prison pen, you are gone."

Loki was genuinely confused by the apparently sudden turn by Sif. He knew she didn't trust him, but this aggressive suspicion was unexpected.

"My Lady, your threat is a fine way to encourage me to be even more careful about my manipulations of your King than I am already. Thank you for the warning." He dripped irony into every word. "Which of my many plots against your King have I accidentally given away to you? My plot to escape slavery at his hands? My plot to prevent the utter grinding into the dust of my realm by he and his army? Or is it..."

Sif interrupted him. "We've seen how he is around you. Do not think we do not see."

Loki scoffed. "That, my Lady, is a consequence of the Odinson's own casting of a binding spell between us! And _naught_ to do with me directly. I tell you this plain and true: you want your Thor back, find a way to break the spell, and he will stop mooning after me or whatever it is you see."

Sif laughed, genuine humour mixed with outrage. "Oh you are a sly one. Turning my suspicions on the one thing that keeps you in check. Your mischief will be your downfall eventually. Do _not_ lie to me today, Trickster."

Loki lost his temper, and his cruel streak rose. "Very well, Sif. I may not lie to you, not today. But some day, I will lie to you. I will tell you a lie so huge, you will not dare disbelieve it."

Sif stepped back with a gasp, shock plain on her face. To threaten so baldly to make someone profoundly question themselves was an act of violence, Loki knew, and he almost immediately regretted it. _I cannot harm what belongs to Thor, and Sif belongs to him as surely as I do. What have I done_?

Without warning, he blacked out.


	18. The Queen

Thor slowed as his mother and her small retinue came into view, attempting to don the grace and self-possession becoming of the King of Asgard. He could see the amusement in his mother's form, far away as she was from him. He smiled back at her and swept her a quick bow, settling into a more natural gait. King of Asgard he may be for now, but Frigga's son he always was and would be.

Something in his head _dropped_, and he stumbled. Loki. He knew Loki had collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut. Halting, he turned to look back in the direction of his tent. Thor glanced around at his mother. Then he turned on his heel and headed back in the direction he had just come at a dead run.

Sif was bent over the sorcerer's prone body, attempting to rouse him. "He just...he threatened me and he just crumpled."

Thor checked for signs of life, sure that the sorcerer was alive but still wanting to feel Loki's pulse under his hand.

"He _threatened_ you? That should not have ...what did he say?"

Sif took a deep breath. "That he would some day tell me a lie so big that I would not dare disbelieve it."

Thor picked Loki up and moved towards the tent. "And so he did. Are you alright, Sif?"

She exhaled shakily. "I suppose I am. He did not do me any actual harm."

Thor lay Loki down on the bed, not gently.

"No," he said. "The sorcerer harmed you, a cut so subtle you did not even realise you had been pierced, but you would bleed out all the same. The lie he threatened to drive you mad with is the lie he just told you. And you believed him."

Sif stared at him, then down at Loki.

The sorcerer was just unconscious from what Thor could see. He wondered if he should call a healer or the mage or both. Thor wasn't sure but he thought Loki had done himself a magical injury, something no-one was equipped to deal with except perhaps Loki himself. Loki had somehow over-ridden the instruction that Thor had given him not to harm what was his. Thor cursed to himself.

He could only guess that Sif had provoked Loki into threatening her, and when it became clear that the threat was effective and was going to cause Sif actual harm, the binding kicked back at Loki. Blast his resourceful, formidable sorcerer. Loki didn't need magic or metal to injure. His words were weapon enough.

Sif looked uneasy. "Is he..?" she asked. "Will he...?"

A cool female voice came from the tent flap. "May I enter, your majesty?" Thor and Sif both swung around, Sif going to one knee, Thor resisting the urge to do the same by habit. Frigga was framed in the dull light of the doorway, exuding calm and grace as always. She must have hurried from where Thor had last seen here to get to the tent so quickly but she looked collected and unruffled.

"Mother," he said. "I apologise for not greeting you..." He did not know how to explain what had happened.

Frigga entered the tent and approached Thor, taking his hands in hers. "Rise, Sif. Thank you for riding with my son and protecting him, mainly from himself I'm sure."

Thor was certain that Frigga did not miss Sif's glance at the prone figure on the bed. "It is my duty and pleasure, your highness," was all that Sif said.

Frigga approached the bed. "So this is the Jotunn you were hunting. You seem to have him well-tamed, waiting naked in your bed but for a towel." She raised an eyebrow.

Thor watched her with what he was sure was a hunted look on his face. Viewed through his mother's eyes, this was an especially unpleasant scene. She had not voiced an objection to any of his strategies, as the Queen Mother traditionally had no role in war, but he had no doubt of her opinion of slavery, or the magic of essences, or of all-out war on this wretched realm. He nodded his assent as Frigga stepped over to the bed.

The Queen crouched somehow gracefully beside the bed and lay a cool hand on Loki's forehead. Thor sensed her seidr sweep over the sorcerer, and wondered if he would object if he could. She closed her eyes and after a few moments opened them again to say, "He will be well, but he is suffering. What is the cause of this?"

Thor felt he could only give a partial explanation but tried anyway. "Loki is bound to me by essential magic."

Frigga frowned at the confirmation that her son had gone through with it.

"I ordered him not to harm me or mine, and he manipulated the binding by promising Sif fear and uncertainty, which of course struck her with fear and uncertainty, harming her."

Sif looked furious at how she had been played. Tricked. If Thor had not pointed out the trick, she would have been caught up in a self-fulfilling web of anxiety that could have crippled her.

Frigga glanced at Sif to ascertain her condition, and on seeing Sif's expression, relaxed.

"So, it is the difference between being forbidden from stabbing someone directly, and leaving a bare blade in their bed to see if they are careless enough to jump in and cut themselves. You cannot properly bind someone who truly owns themselves, my son. And as I am sure you are discovering, you are bound to each other."

She was looking at Loki as she spoke, and Thor felt her seidr flare.

"So the binding punished him for disobeying your instruction by lashing out at him. These spells are constructed to pressure the slave into embracing obedience and submission, like dogs. They punish not with physical pain, but with psychic. He is tormented now by the painful thoughts and feelings we all hide from ourselves and protect ourselves against. His mind is as close to Hel as it is possible to go in this life."

Sif inhaled sharply at this.

Thor could not look either of them in the eye.

Loki opened his eyes, and thought at first he was looking into Thor's. After a moment he realised that these blue eyes were older, calmer, wiser, and feminine. He closed his again, to centre himself. He was lost in a maelstrom of fear and hate and anger, no better unconscious than awake. He wondered if he were mad.

Opening his eyes again, he looked at Queen Frigga, for he knew it was she, as beautiful as her son but more self-possessed, more powerful in herself. Loki felt her hand cool across his head, her fingers in his hair. Then he realised he felt her seidr, her self, brushing the surface of his own self. Eyes widening, he tried to resist, to push her away. She withdrew gracefully.

"Let me help you," she said to him. He wasn't sure if she was speaking aloud or not.

"I need no help," he replied as calmly as he could.

She smiled, not her son's shining smile but just as warm. "You are safe with me, Loki. They say you can hear a lie, so you must hear the truth I am speaking. Let me help you."

He shuddered and was lost again for a few moments as horror and disgust overwhelmed him. He looked over at Thor, desperate, and saw as much helplessness as he felt reflected back at him in Thor's eyes. Frigga observed the look, and as he closed his eyes again, so aware of his vulnerability that he could not bear anyone to see it in, he heard Frigga ask Thor and Sif to leave them alone in the tent. Was _she_ mad, to choose to be alone with her sworn enemy, even neutered as he was?

He felt her cup her hands around his face, her thumbs brushing way the tears he had not noticed. With that her seidr flared again and hovered beside him.

She spoke and again he did not know if she was speaking aloud or not.

"I cannot stop the pain but I can help you lock it away again."

He felt like he was falling. She was a rope, perhaps a safety net, he knew it was true. He pulled his eyes open again in the face of the pain and nodded. He felt her seidr swoop gently and intangible cool fingers began to build strong barriers in his mind. The pain, the exhausting anger and anxiety, began to fade, and he joined his seidr to parallel points with hers and began to help himself.

He felt her brush against the binding -a_h there it is, I had not been able to feel it in itself before, you cursed thing, you_\- and to his surprise, Frigga tugged at it slightly. It hurt, and he heard Thor snarl outside.

"Stay where you are, my son," called Frigga and for a wonder, Thor obeyed. Loki began to feel calm again, the pain withdrawing but not dissipating.

Frigga's seidr withdrew too, gently, and she said, "You can tell the pain is under control but it is not locked away completely. For better or worse it is part of you and if I were to remove it for you, with you, you would no longer be the man you are now. You would like that less than you think, and I suspect my son would find it disappointing."

Loki frowned. "So it seems the mother of my master agrees that I must suffer for her son's whims?"

"Do not twist my words," she said mildly.

To his surprise, he quailed slightly inside at the reproach. He did not wish to displease Frigga. Loki had never met anyone he did not wish to displease, other than his father.

"What did you do? How many of my secrets did you uncover?"

He knew he sounded ungrateful but he could not help it.

"No more than I discovered from looking into your eyes and those of my son," she smiled. "The binding is an ugly thing but it is all that truly stands between you. You must help him find a way to rid you of it."

Loki would have rolled his eyes if he hadn't been afraid she would scold him again.

Frigga laughed as if she had seen the eye-roll anyway.

"You can spend as long as you need making him pay for what he has done to you. I am sure you make him pay already." This was said drily, knowingly. "He will be your slave, by his own hand, by choice, if you handle him right. How do you find him to handle now, your master though he is?"

Loki gaped at her. How did she know? Sif and the others suspected, but she _knew_.

He recovered quickly and said, "He has to be led by the nose sometimes, but he is generally a fast study."

Frigga sighed, and said "Yes, that is my gilded boy. Does he spot your lies?"

Loki knew he had a mischievous expression on his face now. "I mean every word I've ever said to your son," he said, in an earnest voice. 

She smiled. "Is that a lie?"

"No, my Queen. I find manipulating him with the truth to be far more entertaining."

She laughed at that, delighted. Delighted!

Her expression became serious now. "He is the King of Asgard, and my son besides. You must promise me something. Some things. Are you willing to do so?"

He hesitated, and decided. "Yes, my Queen. If it does not endanger my realm or my King, I will promise you anything."

"Then promise me this. Promise to be patient with my son. He has grown from a self-involved boy to a man who has embraced kingship and all that goes with it perhaps sooner than he was ready. He still struggles to find the right path, but he knows he must struggle. He will not accept less of himself than to be the best man he can, even if he suffers for it. He has made an egregious mistake in using a binding spell but he will pay the price because that is what a man does. I am not asking you to forgive him, that is not my right, but I ask you to be patient with him on his journey to humility."

Loki sighed.

"I promise, my Queen."

"Promise me also this. End this war in whatever manner that you choose, but promise to return Thor to me as he is. Neither I nor you would forgive you if you allowed anything else to happen."

Loki nodded.

"I promise, my Queen."

"I understand what I am asking you. I would not ask the impossible of you...even though keeping patient with my son does seem impossible at times." Loki took a moment to appreciate the mischievous look on the Queen's face.

He climbed out of the bed as best he could as she stood, and he went to one knee, towel clutched around his waist. No doubt he looked ridiculous, especially as he had been far more exposed to her a few moments ago than mere nudity allowed. He took Frigga's hand and kissed it.

Thor had obviously had enough of waiting, and flung the tent flap open at this moment, seeing Loki on his knee in front of the Queen.

"Rise, Loki," she said.

He did so, and she took his face in her hands once again and kissed him on both cheeks. He looked at the floor. Thor took in the scene.

"I see Loki has charmed you, mother."

Frigga smiled. "You may show me the camp, now, Thor."

"Yes, my Queen," he said drily, and held the tent flap for her as she stepped outside. Thor looked at Loki before leaving the tent himself.

"You are well?" he asked hesitantly.

"Always," said Loki, with an infuriating smile.

Thor scoffed, and before leaving the tent said, "You scared me, sorcerer. And I am not happy with you." Loki hoped dearly that Thor was just a tiny bit worried that Loki had set up the whole scenario.


	19. Honour and Pride

Frigga and her retinue were feasted and sent on their way back to Asgard before the sun set. Loki sat resplendent in full Asgardian elite guard uniform with Sif and the Warriors Three, beside Sif for some reason. Thor noticed the two talking; it seemed tense but neither seemed about to kill the other so he let it go on.

The Queen spoke to as many soldiers as approached her for a blessing, refusing to admit to any tiredness despite her exertions over Loki. As she prepared to leave, she held the hands of each of Thor's companions, including Loki's, and again kissed him on both cheeks. Sif watched, expressionless. 

As Thor walked his mother to the Bifrost site, he asked her advice as he always did.

"Mother, what shall I do if I cannot free Loki from this?"

She smiled grimly at him and replied, "I would prepare to be owned by a very troublesome slave, Thor. That is what I would do."

Thor made an annoyed sound. "_Mother_. I need to make this right."

Frigga faced him, eyes flashing with anger. Thor took a step back.

"You cannot, Thor. Loki will never not have suffered slavery at your hands, and all that goes with it. This is your burden to carry. You will pay what restitution you can to him for as long as he allows it. Which I hope will be for a long time, for your sake, your happiness. And is perhaps more than you deserve."

Thor was silent.

"Thor," said the Queen. "The war must be brought to a close. Like the binding, this lies between you and Loki, but this at least can be removed immediately for his sake and for the sake of both realms. Call for treaty now."

Thor grimaced.

Frigga did not relent.

"Listen to me, Thor. I am no goddess of battles or war to advise my son the King of Asgard of such things, but I can see this will not end well. Jotunheim is on her knees, there is no advantage to pressing on. Your father learned when to push and when to release pressure, it made him a much finer King and a better man."

Thor was under no illusions that it was Frigga that ensured that Odin learned this particular lesson.

"You have pressed an unmerciful war, culminating in an unmerciful act on your enemy's greatest warrior. There will be balance for this, you will pay the cost. End it now to mitigate it as best you can."

Thor frowned. "I cannot, Mother. If I sue for peace now it will all be for naught. I must press for true victory and bring back the Casket of Winters to Asgard. It would be what father wants. I'm doing it for him. For all of us."

Frigga sighed. She placed a hand on her son's face, cupping it and tilted it down towards her. Thor knew that she could read every thought and emotion that crossed his face, and those that didn't. What did she see, he wondered. His disgust at the disgrace visited upon Asgard by the raid of a handful of zealous young Frost Giants. His anger at their presumption in attacking the Realm Eternal at all. His fear that this assured victory would not cement his rule as a true king of Asgard. His worry that he was simply handling all of this wrongly.

"I will leave it to your judgement, my son, since I have no other choice. You came seeking monsters in this realm and I fear you found one in yourself."

Thor inhaled sharply at the pain that this comment caused, coming as it did from his mother, but he could not disagree.

Frigga continued, "I pray that when this is all over, you will come home and rediscover who you are. With a companion who will not let you forget what you once let yourself become."

Thor nodded, thoroughly shamed.

Frigga sighed, and prepared to travel homeward. "End this war or it may be ended for you, Thor. Heed me. I love you, as I love your father, despite all. You are both better men than you allow yourselves to be."

With that, she stepped into the kaleidoscope walkways of the Bifrost and was gone.

Thor returned to his tent to find Loki sitting in the blankets with a hot drink. The sorcerer looked more at peace than Thor had seen before. He looked up and smiled as Thor walked in. It was a gentle smile at first, and quickly turned into something less benevolent as Thor sighed and walked up to sit beside him.

Loki spoke first. "The Lady Sif has accepted my apology, such as it was, with some kind words of her own about the wisdom of kicking feral dogs."

Thor sighed again, before he could bring himself to respond.

"You could have destroyed her mind, Loki. Led her to utter paranoia waiting for the other shoe to fall. Terrorised by your presence in case you dropped this lie on her without warning, terrorised by your absence for fear that you were waiting in the shadows to do so. I don't know what she did to provoke you, but she could not have deserved that." _You put the fear of the gods into her with your words, Liesmith_, he did not say aloud. _The words of a god. A god of lies and mischief._

Loki shrugged, but did look a little troubled. "Sif fears me, and my words, because she truly sees me. She fears that I will fight like a cornered rat until I am free or dead."

Thor lay back on the bed, having only managed to get his boots off. He was exhausted.

Loki continued. "She is _right_, Thor. Not only is this binding an abomination, it is not fit for purpose. It makes me more dangerous. There is no trust to be earned, no good faith to be built. It has to go."

"I cannot have this conversation again," groaned Thor, spreading his arms out in surrender. In truth, Loki only usually jabbed at Thor about the binding, this was a rare serious conversation and one they had not had before. Loki had certainly not spoken of trust before. That was a good sign surely, even if he was saying he felt such a thing impossible.

"Ah, I'm sorry if this is burdensome for you, my prince. Let us not speak of it again. It tires me too."

Thor had no idea if Loki was being sarcastic or not, and he didn't care. He closed his eyes. He felt Loki shift to straddle him across the thighs, and opened his eyes to the sight of the sorcerer above him, observing, taking him in, admiring him, even. His dress trousers felt a little tighter, suddenly.

Loki reached across and grabbed one of Thor's outstretched arm by the wrist and then the other, pinning a wrist on either side of Thor's head. Thor was sure that even with the sorcerer's strength and leverage, he would probably be able to get free if he wanted to, and he knew Loki was aware of this too. Was he being playful?

"Mmm. Seeing you so obedient and so slavishly devoted to your mother the Queen's every whim and action was an unusual treat, my prince." The words were taunting but the tone was fond. "I must say I enjoyed seeing you on your toes, waiting with devotion for her approval."

Thor closed his eyes. "Loki, you should have joined us then as I escorted my lady mother to the Bifrost."

Loki laughed a soft knowing laugh. "She is formidable for all her gentleness and calm," he said. "Her fine reputation does not do her justice. And she is a fine healer."

He began to work his hands down Thor's arms, gripping and releasing them in a massaging motion. Thor closed his eyes again. If he got a blade in one from the sorcerer, so be it.

"She did not simply help heal you, Loki. She does not kiss those she heals so fondly on both cheeks. What did you and she speak about, that made her so well-disposed towards you?"

He was not shocked at the reply.

"Why, you, of course, my prince."

"All flattering, I expect, Loki?"

"Very, my prince. Of course I left out the more crude descriptions of our bedsports, but I think she understood your matchless prowess well enough."

Thor's eyes flew open in horror. "That is not...you would not. She did not. _Loki_."

Loki laughed that laugh again. It sounded wonderful to Thor's ears. Genuine laughter from his mischievous sorcerer. Loki's hands moved down to Thor's shoulders where they kneaded and massaged.

Thor turned serious again. "She said to me that I can never truly repay my debt to you for what I have done. I think she fears I will face punishment from it. Would you like that? Is that what you want?"

He looked at the sorcerer's face, which shut down. Thor cursed his loose tongue. Why ask so direct a question to a man who may not speak freely?

Loki did reply after a moment. "It has an appeal, yes. I am not sure I could stomach to see you punished to a degree that matches my suffering, and to be truthful, I would not wish it on you either."

Thor closed his eyes. "I ...am glad I suppose. And I am sorry. So sorry."

"More fine words, Thunderer. I will not trust you until I see actions to back them up."

_Fair_, thought Thor, as he felt the sorcerer's hands start to open his tunic. "She also says I should end the war now. Sue for treaty."

The sorcerer stilled. "And...?"

"I cannot, Loki. I must see this thing through." He sat up, tunic hanging open, to face the man straddling him. He placed his hands on Loki's hips to stop him from swinging off. "My honour, the honour of Asgard, the honour of the troops, it would not be right to stop now."

Loki looked at him, sadly, green eyes deep and unusually calm, only inches from his own. "You are a king and a god both. Your honour can bear a lot. More than your stupid pride can."

He took Thor's head in his hands, gently.

"So be it."

He kissed Thor with affection, and then with growing passion. They tumbled back on the bed.


	20. Serpent

The next morning, Loki woke to the feeling of Thor stroking the lightning-burn scar on his back, shoulder to hip. The Thunderer liked that he had marked his property, whether he would admit to it or not. Loki pillowed his arms under his chin, stared at the tent wall, and allowed it. Thor noticed his wakefulness and asked in a low voice, "Does it bother you?"

"Does it hurt me? No." Loki was scathing. "Does it bother me? Immensely."

Thor stopped stroking. Loki couldn't see what he was doing and was surprised to feel the Thunderer's mouth on the small of his back, kissing.

"Perhaps someday you will mark me with your own sign, sorcerer."

Loki scoffed. "My seidr is too complex to be reduced to a single symbol, Thunderer."

Thor ignored him, tracing the lightning scar upwards with a finger. "A serpent," he mused. "Green, for your eyes."

Loki turned then to look at him. Thor was focussed entirely on Loki's scar. Loki had a sudden urge to feel Thor's come on it. Something about his expression caught Thor's eye. Loki nodded. "Do it," he said.

Thor's expression changed from quiet intent to something far more heated. Loki raised himself on his elbows to watch.

Thor moved so he was kneeling back in Loki's line of sight and, bracing one hand on Loki's back, palm and fingers splayed on the marking he had put on Loki's body, he began to stroke his own cock. Loki hadn't properly watched Thor pleasure himself before; it was a magnificent sight.

Despite his huge hand, Thor's cock was huge still, and Loki sank into the beautiful sight of the one working the other. Loki watched Thor's face as his focus switched between the sensation pulsing from his fisted cock and Loki's marking, until finally he pushed himself over the edge, raised himself up on his knees and spilled his seed on Loki's back.

Loki couldn't quite twist to see the look on Thor's face as he came but could feel the hot ropes of come land on his back. When he was done, Thor took a moment to catch his breath and then leaned back to appreciate his work, something of the ecstasy still evident on his face, still somewhat caught up in his release. Loki thought he could never conjure anything so beautiful in his imagination.

Thor leaned forward again, placing his fingers in the thick strings of warm seed on Loki's back, smoothing them across and along the lightning marking.

Once he was satisfied, he lay down beside Loki and kissed him deeply. "You might be my every fantasy," he murmured against Loki's mouth, then caught himself. 

Loki realised he was glaring.

"...if my fantasies involved ecstasy at the hands and mercy of my bitterest enemy," Thor finished, favouring him with one of those smiles which made Loki feel he was basking in sunshine. "Loki, do not look so sour. I would indulge you in your fantasies if you would allow me to."

Loki felt faint ghostly sharp cracks of pain across his buttocks and hips.

"Perhaps," he said. "When some trust has been established."

Thor sighed and fell back. He accepted that Loki would not let himself be fully open to Thor until the binding was gone, but it frustrated him.

"Clean my back, please, it's getting unpleasantly cold."

Thor did so with a warm damp cloth and then spooned into Loki, snaking a hand around to his groin and palming his cock. He slowly and intently brought Loki to a peak while whispering as wide a range of fantasies as Loki had ever heard, some of which Loki looked forward to finding out more about.

The Asgardian Army was making its last push for Utgard. Loki felt inutterably sad, and tired besides despite the early hour of the evening. As night fell, the city walls came into sight. A siege there and perhaps at the palace lay ahead.

They made camp, and Thor called a council in his tent. As they began to gather, Loki spoke to him aside, bluntly. "I will oppose you in all ways I can unless you order me not to. It would not be wise to have me in this meeting."

Hogun arrived and placed a cylinder in Thor's hand. "A message from King Laufey, your majesty."

Loki stiffened. "Trust him not, Thor," he said, and grimaced.

Thor smiled at him, sadly, sympathy for Loki's warring emotions, loyalty to his king on the one hand and protectiveness of Thor on the other.

Thor's face changed as a thought occured to him._ Oh no_. Loki would have been amused if he hadn't been able to practically read Thor's thoughts. Thought.

"Loki. What do you know of King Laufey?"

Loki looked at Thor with a maddening smile. "It's far too late to make any real use of my knowledge now, Thunderer. You thought of me as a blunt instrument when I have far more uses than that. For what I know of him; I know he is devious, intelligent, ruthless and brave. I have no doubt he has accounted for many of the possible outcomes of tomorrow. I have no doubt he will sacrifice whatever is needed for the good of Jotunheim, Thor. And so will I, my prince. So will I." This last, Loki delivered in a poisonous whisper.

They faced each other, as opposed as they ever been had on the battlefield. Loki felt his will bend under pressure from the binding, no doubt the consequence of Thor's will being brought to bear on it, conscious or unconscious, willing him to obey. Loki found himself wanting to obey Thor, wanting to help him survive the coming battle whatever shape it may take. He had promised the Queen, and he wanted to keep Thor safe for himself, he needed to stay by his side and protect him. He shook his head as the pressure, the desire, bore down on him.

Suddenly it was gone. The binding was still there, flexing at the back of his mind, but the desire to comply with Thor's wishes suddenly receded, leaving him almost panting with the effort of resisting it. He saw Thor's face and understood.

"Loki, I...I saw. I saw your will fade away and almost break. I did not mean it."

Loki could not speak from the shock of the violation, and tried to recover himself. 

Thor's face hardened. "You know that I cannot think to release you before this war is done. But afterwards..."

"Afterwards you are MINE, Thunderer," snarled Loki, covering his shakiness with fury. "If you live, I will come to collect."

"As I have already said, Loki, I am yours for the taking. Loki. LOKI."

Thor forced Loki to look at him. "I do not doubt you will sacrifice whatever is needed for the good of Jotunheim. I would wish to be able to say the same of myself for Asgard. It would have been true before. But now... I will not sacrifice you, Loki. I will keep good my promise to you and not force you to use your powers again against your people. Even in the breach."

Loki took a deep breath, and gambled. "Call this off, Thor. Finish it now. Sue for treaty, sue for peace. Do not read Laufey's letter, it will create uncertainty and chaos, and this is where he thrives. He has the Casket of Winters, and he does not use it to wage war. If not war, then what? I fear he has lured you here, and if you continue as you are, you are walking into a trap."

Thor looked northwards to the walled city on the plains. He looked back at the camp spread beneath them both. Looking Loki directly in the eye, Thor opened the cylinder containing Laufey's letter. He dropped his eyes to the words, and went very still.

"You were warned," Loki said in a low voice. "I tried to warn you."

Moments ticked by.

"You did warn me," said Thor. "If I had heeded your warning, I would still be ignorant of the fact that I hold as captive a prince of Jotunheim, Loptr Laufeyson, firstborn to the crown."


	21. The Shadow Prince

Loki stayed silent. He would not be the one to speak first. Let Thor set the tone here.

The war between them was approaching a climax, or perhaps a denouement, in tandem with the war between their realms that they had both been fighting these past months. Either one or both of them could die tomorrow. Perhaps, even probably at one another's hands if it came to it, in spite of Loki's promise to Frigga. Loki wondered what Laufey's play was.

Thor stared at him for long seconds.

Eventually Thor said, "Prince Loptr, I presume?"

Loki sighed. "Prince Loptr is dead. As good as never existed. Never born. I told you that name was taken from me. Loptr died in the temple shortly after birth. Abandoned by his parents as is custom for babies born stunted or otherwise unlikely to survive. Though the king indulges me sometimes, in truth, the firstborn son of Laufey was gone before he could be properly named."

"And yet," Thor bit off each word, "here you are."

Loki had nothing to say to that.

He considered a quicksilver smile, but decided that would almost certainly lead to Thor ending the conversation immediately and for Loki at least, in a very permanent way. Loki held out his hand for the letter, and Thor gave it to him.

Loki read it aloud. "His majesty King Laufey invites Thor Odinson, King of Asgard, to take steps together with him for the restoration of peace. His majesty King Laufey accepts as a basis for the peace negotiations that his son, Loptr, firstborn to the crown and third prince of the realm, remain bound as slave and hostage to his majesty King Thor."

Loki smiled. It was not a pleasant smile. He sometimes wondered if his entire existence was built as a piece on his father's gameboard. Anger flared and he allowed himself a moment of fervent hope that the storm he felt brewing in Thor would upend that board and sweep it away.

Of course, Loki would be the first to face the storm.

Thor was utterly expressionless, but Loki could feel clouds gathering outside, churning.

Thor spoke again, tightly controlled anger in his voice. "Third prince of the realm, is it?"

Loki remained calm. Patient. He had promised Frigga.

"There is no third prince. It is a conceit that my father...that Laufey affects when he is feeling indulgent of me. If you knew anything of the royal house of Jotunheim, you would know that Laufey named only a first and second prince."

Thor snapped one word. "_Laufeyson_."

Loki was not slow to reply.

"That I am, _Odinson_. My father has never denied me as his trueborn son, though I was cast aside from the succession and raised almost as a child adopted, no, fostered by the royal family."

Lightning flashed outside. Thunder followed almost immediately. Loki felt fear rumble through him also. He had brushed against the untrammelled anger of the Odinson once before, and it had been an awesome, terrible thing. There was no escape this time except what Thor chose to grant him.

Loki allowed the fear to move through him, to be replaced by calm. Whatever happened now, happened. Something was also...happening. He felt centred in a way that he never had before. He looked at Thor and for the first time he felt Thor could see him. He wondered what Thor was seeing. He wondered what Thor thought of it. Did he want to destroy it, destroy Loki?

"_Liesmith_." Thor hissed the word. "Keeper of secrets."

"Yes," said Loki, simply. "I am the nameless shifting tangle that destroys and creates." _Where did that come from? It was true, but where did it come from?_ "Do not tell me I do not fascinate you in my deceits, truths and manipulations."

Loki heard the storm rumble, not violently.

"_Shapechanger_. You became what you knew I wanted."

Now that stung. Loki became what he had to, to survive. He had obeyed and begged and acquiesced and pleased because he had _had_ to. He had asked for death, and he was given this instead. He had not asked for this.

His temper flared.

"_I became what you made me_."

Thor took a step back at Loki's anger. Thor, who would stand toe to toe with a dragon.

"_I asked you for mercy and you denied me_."

Loki felt the binding pulse. He pushed it away and sank to both knees anyway. Calm.

"And I am still my own, Thunderer, and only me. My name, my father's name, changes nothing. I am Loki, of many names and none, but the raw unvarnished truth is, I am only Loki, and for you, because it is what you want, I will be only Loki, just myself. If you will have me. The raw, unvarnished, unbound me is yours for the taking."

He looked up with a mischievous smile.

"If you can take me."

He bowed his head, exposing the back of his neck to Mjolnir if Thor took it upon himself to finally destroy his trickster slave.

Long seconds passed. The storm rumbled again, ponderously. He saw Thor's boots appear in front of him, and felt Mjolnir sway from his belt. He was calm, despite expecting he knew not what.

_Awaiting death is easier than awaiting violation._ A bitter thought.

To some astonishment, he saw Thor crouch in front of him and felt a large hand cup his face, Thor's other hand moving to cradle the back of his neck, tilting his head so they were inches apart.

His forehead rested on Loki's for a moment, and with that he rose, drawing Loki to his feet. They stood not a foot apart, Loki looking slightly up at the taller man.

"Loki. You are...you may be the death of me."

Loki decided to push his luck.

"I may be, yet. Thor. Let me be clear. I owe you nothing. Not the truth. Not anything of who or what I am. Anything you have from me is something you have taken without my consent at worst, and at best is a gift I have given to you in spite of everything you have taken. I will not apologise for misleading you or misdirecting you or even _stabbing_ you if the whim takes me. I owe you _nothing_. Tell me you accept this."

Thor eyed him cautiously and said, "I will not accept being stabbed, sorcerer, but I accept the rest, at least while you are bound."

Loki grinned at him. "I will endeavour not to stab you then, Thunderer. No guarantees."

Thor was grim. "Loki. Asgard marches on your capital tomorrow."

Loki sat on the warm volcanic rock far enough from Thor's tent that he could not hear more than murmurs of the war council. He was leaning back against a boulder, snug enough in the blanket he had taken from the bed with its comforting scent. Loki traced the constellations of his childhood across the clear sky, following them to the skyline of the city across the plains, picked out now in fewer lights than there had been when he was a boy.

If he somehow got loose of this damned, blasted binding, how much damage could he do to the Asgardian army before they overran the walls of Utgard? Could he sow dissent in time enough for an attack to be blunted by rumours, fear, distrust? What misdirections could he create so the Einherjar wasted their energies on targets other than the city? It was useless to speculate really, but he was getting desperate. He wished again he knew what his father planned.

Thor's counsellors began to leave the tent, and after, Thor approached him with a steaming drink to share. He sat beside Loki and moved under the blanket, hooking his foot behind Loki's ankle. They were both silent for a time, hip to hip, thigh to thigh.

"How much did you listen to?" Thor asked eventually.

"None of it," Loki replied, still looking ahead. "Are you going to share your decision with me?"

He knew what Thor's decision would be.

"I am going to treat with Laufey."

Loki nodded.

Thor looked at him then. "It is what you wanted, is it not?" he asked.

"I want the war to be over, Thor. I suppose there are no good choices here. Just...be wary of Laufey, especially if he offers you what you wish to have."

Thor considered for a few moments. "Laufey clearly believes I wish to have you."

Loki made a humming noise before answering. "Once he knew I was your captive he might have guessed I would seduce you while withholding from you the knowledge that he is my father."

Thor looked irritated at the idea that Loki had deliberately seduced him, but he knew it was true. He had known while it was happening and let Loki have at it.

Loki continued, "What better way to rattle your enemy than pull the carpet out from under them with a revelation so personal just before negotiations? He struck at the core of you through me. Telling you my name in the same breath as offering to treat with you was obviously a design to make you act rashly. If you had killed me tonight in anger for keeping secrets, no doubt you would have been far easier to provoke tomorrow at the treaty table."

Thor looked disbelieving. "He knew I might have killed you and yet he revealed you anyway?"

Loki laughed. "I told you Laufey would sacrifice anything for the good of Jotunheim. He would have lost a son, a son I am sure he loves, to gain advantage over Asgard. He has already lost at least one son, the crown prince, in battle." _By my hand, in fact if not in truth_. _Oh Byliestr. I hope Father did not learn of how you suffered_. "For the love I know he has for me, he probably hoped I would talk my way out of it, as I did, but he would accept the other without blinking."

Thor was silent for a moment. "It is so strange to hear you put such words on your actions. You seduced me. You talked me out of killing you in anger at your half-truths. Why do I sit here with you in peace when I should be abeying you, shunning you, and as king and general, imprisoning you at the very least?" He sighed and tipped back his head to look at the sky, resigned.

Loki smiled then, a genuine unabashed smile of pure pleasure. "Because I have _seduced_ you, Thunderer, mind and body, spirit and soul. You have no choice, not and remain yourself. I will say what I wish and do as I please and there is little of either that you will deny me."

He allowed Thor to mull on this for a few moments, delighting in Thor's disgruntlement.

"And if you want me to speak the full truth, Thunderer, conqueror, I will remind you that you have seduced me too, perhaps seduced me first. I think you did so, truly, binding or no binding. And the reason you stayed your hand instead of striking me dead tonight was because I spoke the truth. Lies and half-truths and misdirection are useful in creating mischief and chaos, but there is nothing like the truth to destroy. We have destroyed each other." _The once king of Asgard and the never prince of Jotunheim tied together in the destruction of themselves._

They were silent then.

Thor found he could not quite believe the circumstances of this war's end. _ I have put a collar on my own neck and handed the leash to a prince of Jotunheim_.

After some time, Thor spoke again. "You are to join me tomorrow at negotiations, Loki. I want a prince of Jotunheim by my side in Asgardian garb. Laufey is not the only one to play with expectations."

Loki frowned. "You said you would not use me against my people."

"Not true, Liesmith. I said I would not force you to use your powers against your people. I will use you to balance the scales on which Laufey placed a finger though. And I will pay the price of it when the time comes."

Loki rolled his eyes. "Your mother has some promises from me. I suppose being by your side in this will allow me to be best placed to fulfill them."

"Promises?" Thor was confounded. "What promises have you made my mother?"

"That is between me and Queen Frigga," responded Loki, primly. He could not quite figure out the look on Thor's face. Annoyance? Anger? Ohh. No, it was ... "Jealousy, Thunderer? You are jealous that your mother and I have a secret? Hehehehe." Oh this was delicious.

Thor sighed. "She treats you as a son already. The Queen has always known me better than I know myself, perhaps that is true for you too, though she met you so briefly."

They gazed at the sparse lights of the city below, and the rare clear skies overhead. Loki saw the city he grew up in, remembering having free run of it as a child and young man because of his privilege of royal birth accompanied by the lack of royal obligations that came with his shadow status.

He knew what Thor saw when he looked there. Something to be conquered, subjugated. His prize after years of righteous war.

Loki was not expecting the question from Thor.

"Would you accept the throne, if it were offered you?"

Loki hesitated. "If I had to," he said, staring straight ahead at the city.

Thor was looking at him curiously. "You have been unhappy here."

"Shhh," said Loki, still looking ahead at the city. "Let's not talk of such things."

Thor moved to kiss Loki, who accepted passively, and as Thor grinned and disappeared under the blanket to dip his head between Loki's thighs, Loki sighed and thought about secrets. He closed his eyes as he felt a hot, wet caress on his suddenly alert cock. This was not what he needed tonight but he welcomed it all the same. He did enjoy watching Thor suck him during the rare times that Thor chose to do it and Loki permitted him, and it was pleasant to just relax on the pure feeling of intimacy, of being taken care of, being the sole focus of Thor's attentions for a time.

Thor settled into what was becoming a familiar, comfortable pattern of licking and swirling the tongue, lips and mouth around the head of Loki's cock while using that large, strong, warm hand to pump it firmly and confidently. Loki gasped as Thor focused his tongue on the underside of Loki's cock and followed it with a swallow of as much as he could take into his throat, Loki's mind only catching up on events moments after the delicious sensation thrilled his body.

Loki tried not to rut into Thor's mouth but couldn't help slowly pumping his hips. He was almost lazy in his movements and Thor accommodated them skilfully. Before long Loki was ready to spill, and wouldn't he like just once to come in Thor's beautiful mouth or come over that beautiful face, in that hair which trapped sunshine.

With a murmur of "I'm going to..." he pulled the blanket back enough to watch Thor finish him off with his hand, but to his surprise, Thor's mouth remained around his cock, suction and heat drawing Loki closer, closer.

With as restrained a cry as he could manage, Loki watched almost disbelieving as Thor sucked him through the first moment of his climax, spat out a mouthful of Loki's seed and then tilted his face back to let Loki's come decorate his face.

Eyes closed, mouth open with tongue curved to catch dripping seed, Thor was an image of the purely erotic and Loki could not quite believe he was seeing it as pulsing pleasure overtook him and all Loki was in those moments was ecstasy in body and mind, in the strong hands of his prince.

When he starting to calm down, Loki reached out to Thor, who took a moment to sit back on his knees and heels, and kissed him, so they were both sticky messes. It took Loki a few minutes to gather himself and clean them both off. They lay against the rock together for some time afterwards, Thor's erection large and hot and hard and welcome through his leathers against Loki's back.

Loki sighed. He knew what Thor wanted but would not ask for. And he was right not to ask. Just as Loki would be right in refusing, and in taking offence if asked.

Thor wanted to take a prince of Jotunheim here, in view of royal Utgard, which itself awaited violation. He wanted Loki on his belly, submitting to him, as Thor's army in turn prepared to despoil the capital city of their enemy. Loki knew Thor well enough to know that he burned with the desire of taking Loki with Loki on his hands and knees as Thor watched images in his head of Utgard, in its contempt for Asgard, burning.

But Thor would not dare utter such a thing. If Loki made to move back to the tent now, Thor would join him, and they would rut in the dark in their now-familiar way until Thor found his pleasure in Loki, and neither of them would ever have to acknowledge Thor's dark fantasy.

Loki leaned back on Thor's warm, firm body. _To Hels with it. This could be our last night, and he wants this. And it is just me and him. I will shame myself for him this one time._

Loki would have to take the lead, then. He turned to look at Thor over his shoulder and murmured "So, did you bring oil, or not?"

Thor stiffened for a moment, and, not meeting Loki's eye, nodded, and was silent.

Loki raised Thor's hand to his mouth and kissed the palm, amused, and said in a low voice, "How do you want me?"

He was going to force Thor to say it; it was the least amount of work Thor deserved to have to do if he wanted this.

Thor took a deep breath. "On your elbows and knees, head down, tunic off, trousers pulled down by your ankles."

Well, that was direct enough. And a near mirror of how Thor took Loki the first time.

Loki remembered how hard Thor had come inside him then, Thor's honest anger much easier for Loki to abide than his self-serving compassion. Loki had refused to be passive then, had goaded Thor into roughly, blatantly fucking him, and Loki had taken what pleasure he could from it as a _fuck you_ right back at his enemy.

This time though, he would give Thor what he wanted. If he were honest with himself, he needed this too. Frigga's cool fingers still soothed his mind but the turmoil of tomorrow's possibilities still made Loki feel on edge. He wanted to be at the mercy of his beautiful near-tame brute.

Loki laid the blanket down for the sake of his knees and elbows, stripped off his tunic, and lowered his leathers down to his ankles. He made sure Thor got a good view as he did so. He went down on all fours only, knowing though that Thor would prefer to take him with Loki's head and upper body lowered, leaning on his forearms and elbows, ass in the air, but let him work for that. Thor would enjoy the fantasy of forcing Loki to submit.

Loki didn't ask Thor which direction Thor would have him face; he turned towards Utgard, so Thor could look at the city while he took Loki. While he thought about his coming conquest on the morrow. Loki knew things would not go as Thor expected. _Nothing to be done for it. Let him fantasize._

Thor was unexpectedly affectionate at first, nuzzling Loki's hair, and neck, and ears, causing Loki to shiver. He whispered what he had not spoken aloud before, how beautiful Loki was, how Thor loved to touch him, taste him, watch him please and be pleased, how Thor fantasized about what they had yet to do and discover together, in bed and out of it, how he needed Loki.

Loki closed his eyes in pleasure, bowed his head and accepted the worship, feeling curiously sad and happy at the same time, reassured and safe with the weight of Thor on his back and Thor's voice hot by his ear. Then Thor was kissing his way down Loki's back, down his lightning mark, when he paused and said, "I know you don't need me, and never will, but I hope when we are both free of this binding that you at least will still want me, Loki."

Loki's eyes flew open and his gasp of shock mingled with the gasp a moment later of feeling Thor's tongue at Loki's puckered entrance, light and hot and strong and wet. The sensation radiated to the tip of Loki's already sated cock, out to his fingertips and toes and around his scalp, the tiniest teasing making him hypersensitive, and it was with an effort that he did not arch his back and stretch out his limbs to chase that feeling.

Thor was lapping now, the tops of Loki's thighs, his inner thighs, his perineum, his balls, and returning to Loki's hole with sweeping, darting tongue thrusts. Loki was not ready to get hard again and it was a peculiar sensation to be so aroused without his cock directly involved. His body was singing with the words, with the sensations, with the love that Thor was pouring into him.

Loki heard the sound of a jar being unstoppered and throbbed with pleasure as Thor started to prepare him. He went quickly enough, fucking Loki with one then two fingers, scissoring them, plying the muscles with oil and massage and intent. A third finger joined them up to the first knuckle, and then all in the way in up to the palm.

Thor wasn't being gentle but was not exactly rough, he was being demanding, masterful, and Loki couldn't get enough. He had to hear Thor saying how much he wanted Loki, even if Loki should be ashamed of how Thor wanted him tonight. He wanted to hear it.

Each time Thor had fucked Loki, Loki had sensed Thor's reluctance to truly impose himself on his bound slave and Loki did not want it to stand between them this time, between Thor and true abandon in Loki's body tonight. He hoped Thor would do as he would now without restraint and trust Loki to find his own pleasure. It was a risk not to discuss limits, he knew how dangerous an unrestrained Thor could be, but he would be lying to himself if the self-destructive streak in him didn't want to take that risk just once. And maybe he was ready to give a little trust to his oaf of a prince.

"What do you want from me, Thor?"

Thor looked a him, gauging, measuring, silent.

Loki grinned and continued. "Talk to me, _conqueror__. _Tell me what you want from me while you fuck me. Utgard lies ahead, my prince. Tell me what you want, how you want it. Take your pleasure as you will, Thunderer. It pleases me that you be rough tonight."

Thor sat back, and removed his fingers gently. He bent over Loki, smoothed his hair aside away from his neck and kissed the nape in a way that was somehow even more erotic than all the rest of his touches. Loki felt his whole body alight with pleasure and he sighed. Thor bent back so he was kneeling upright behind Loki's crouched form. He put his hand on Loki's neck where he had kissed, forcing Loki's head further down into a position of utmost submission, not painfully, but very firmly.

Loki shuddered all over as Thor whispered his name and lined up his cock with Loki's entrance, paused for a moment no doubt to get his fill of the view of Utgard over Loki's prone, servile body, and thrust in with a savage snap of his hips.

He hissed, "I'm going to _ruin _you, sorcerer," and Loki cried out with the pain and the deep ache and the beginnings of pleasure and not a little fear.

Thor fucked his ass, keeping a firm hand on the scruff of Loki's neck, strong fingers gripping the sides of Loki's neck hard enough to bruise. He placed his other hand and arm around Loki's waist to position his hips so he was fucking Loki as deeply as possible.

Loki cried out with each thrust, also giving into his baser instincts, no longer guarding his reactions as he had always done even in the deepest pleasures Thor had coaxed from him, delighting in his helplessness in the Thunderer's grip.

He sounded pitiful, he knew, mewling helplessly at the pain as the Thunderer pounded him, crying out the pleasure of being full and fucked. It was glorious. To be at Thor's true mercy (and he gave none), to be Thor's for the taking (and he was_ taking_), to be _Thor's_...Loki mewled and he cried and he gasped and he revelled in it, submitted to it. Allowing himself after so long to be completely helpless was exhilarating.

He started to refuse and to beg, and Thor responded with insults to his whore, to his prize, to his sorcerer, ordering him to silence and when Loki could not be silent, pulled Loki upright and pushed his fingers into his mouth.

Loki gagged around them as Thor continued to pound into him. Loki tongued the fingers as much as he could and Thor withdrew his hand with a disgusted noise that made Loki shudder again, making Thor gasp. Thor's strong grasp kept Loki at a comfortable angle for Thor to continue thrusting into him while Thor's other hand grasped Loki roughly by the jaw, forcing him to look at Utgard's lights, dull in the distance.

"You see that sorcerer? Tomorrow that is MINE." An especially rough thrust caused Loki to keen. "And you sorcerer?" Thor forced Loki's head to turn so he could scrape his teeth over Loki's mouth."You are mine, tonight, tomorrow and always, whatever you will. No-one will take you from me, not even you." He bent so he could kiss Loki as deeply as possible, which wasn't very deep given the angle but Loki responded as best he could. Glorious.

Suddenly Thor slowed, and Loki felt himself loosed from Thor's grip, the beginnings of bruises blooming everywhere the Thunderer had groped and held him. Thor gently withdrew his cock and lay Loki on the blanket on his side. Loki looked up at him, panting and perplexed. Had Thor lost his nerve completely this time? What...

"Enough games, sorcerer." He gently turned a Loki on his back and to Loki's astonishment, kissed him passionately and roughly, but with affection. "I have fucked a prince of Jotunheim on his knees in view of the capital which I am about to despoil, but I wish for more tonight. You've given me much already this night, will you give me more? I promise you all I am and all I have if you will."

Loki was as good as struck dumb for the second time that night, and could but nod. He looked into that blue eyed gaze wondering what self-destructive impulse could have led Thor to promise such a thing.

The Thunderer seemed to read his mind, as he laughed and said, "Love, sorcerer. It is love. I love you."

Loki finally found his voice and managed a "Thor..." before the Thunderer clapped a large hand over his mouth and said, "I need to hear nothing more from you this night, Loki. Let us finish this as we need." He removed his hand and knelt between Loki's legs, throwing one over a broad shoulder, and guided his cock back into Loki's body, gently this time.

"Don't...don't be too sentimental, Thunderer," Loki was able to manage a protest at the change in pace. Thor chortled. "As you wish, my love," he said as he started to pound into Loki again, but this time they were face-to-face, eye-to eye, able to watch and enjoy and delight in the pure joy and pleasure they brought each other.

Thor had used his sorcerer hard, as they both wanted, and lovingly too, which Thor had not been sure Loki would appreciate. Thor knew he held Loki's trust in his palm like a fluttering baby bird, and he intended to be as gentle as he could with this fragile gift. The sorcerer had surely melted as Thor had taken him face-to-face. It was not unexpected exactly, it was just...somehow a thing of unexpected wonder.

They went back to the tent soon after and didn't talk. There was no need. Thor brought a glass of cool water to bring Loki back to himself, stroking gently over Loki's bruises as Thor soothed him with a warm cloth. Thor was soon ready for sleep, but even with Thor's caresses, Loki was as ever allowing his mind to start calculating again as soon as the flush of their lovemaking started to drain away.

Obviously the physical discomfort of a rough fucking was not quite sufficient to distract Loki. Thor would have to work on that.

He lay beside Loki and threw his arm over, feeling Loki trying to ease himself into sleep.

Thor, eyes already closed, muttered "Stop _thinking_, sorcerer," and pulled Loki into a tight, reckless embrace, drawing a pained groan as his carelessness lit up Loki's soreness, but Loki closed his eyes and started to relax.

Soon Thor felt Loki's breathing slow, and found himself dwelling on that which awaited them the next day. He could not concern himself for what tomorrow might mean for him and Loki and what they were beginning to create together. He had to focus on the most immediately important duties; victory and the end of war.

Sleep never quite came for the King of Asgard.

Thor awakened more fully to find that Loki had moved to lying on his belly, loose-limbed and completely still, more deeply asleep than Thor remembered seeing before. Thor gently pulled off the blanket to see his handiwork beneath from the night before, slightly shocked at the spill of bruises across Loki's body, and along his neck and jaw line, as well as the obvious discomfort Loki was in from actually being fucked so roughly.

He hoped he had not crossed a threshold here too. He and the sorcerer were going to have a talk one way or the other. Such strange needs his Jotunn had. Thor was not sure if his own needs had shifted to match the sorcerer's, or whether they were always within him, hidden even from himself.

Thor realised that Fandral stood by the tent flap with a tray of food and steaming drinks. He was looking at Loki as if trying to solve a puzzle. Would it bother Loki if Fandral could see the bruises? Thor didn't think too much of the bruising was visible above the blankets.

"You are a breakfast maid now, Fandral?"

Thor rose and smilingly took the tray from Fandral, who had startled at Thor's voice. What was wrong with him?

Fandral cleared his throat. "Good morning, your majesty. It's later than you would usually come to break your fast so I thought you might be hungry."

Thor arched an eyebrow at Fandral's formal address.

"Is there something else, Fandral?"

Fandral simply looked at Thor for a moment and then looked back at Loki, who appeared to have woken, judging only by his open eyes.

He was still on his belly with his face turned towards the side of the tent, staring glassily at nothing. He sighed quietly, chest barely moving. Thor couldn't tell if it indicated tiredness, satisfaction, or resignation, but at least it had nothing of that quivering, desperate quality that Loki had exuded the previous day.

Thor suddenly realised that Sif too was in the tent too, standing at the end of the bed, looking down at Loki with a frown.

"Did you..." Fandral licked his lips and went on. "Is he well? We heard..."

Eyes still fixed on an unknown point, Loki murmured, "He's right here, you know. You could ask him."

Fandral grimaced and snapped "I am asking your master. Be silent, slave."

Thor set down the tray and folded his arms. "You have concerns for my slave, Fandral?"

Fandral swallowed at his tone, and Thor wondered how many years it had been since one of his close friends had felt reason to fear his temper. And why would they fear it now?

Sif stood at the entrance, and said in a blunt tone, "We heard sounds of torture coming from near your tent last night, Thor. Like you were... beating him severely. We did not want to interfere because, well, I suppose it is your right to treat such as him in any way you want. But our concern is mainly for you."

Sif continued. "Such behaviour is not becoming of a king of Asgard, and perhaps more importantly to us, to your friends, is that it is not characteristic of you. We worry that...you are not yourself. That perhaps you are being ...directed to act in ways that are not true to who you are. So I suppose my question to you is... are _you_ well?"

Loki laughed a low, pleased laugh, followed by a groan of pain as the movement of his body caused pain to shoot across his bruising and his sore ass and oh Norns, Thor had bruised and used him fairly satisfactorily, hadn't he? More delicious right now was the fear that Thor's coterie of idiots still had of him, tightly bound and obedient though he was, was as satisfying a trick as he could play, if only he was actually playing it.

In his preoccupation yesterday, he had not anticipated this possible outcome and had nothing prepared to meet, use or counter it.

He couldn't even bring himself to care if Thor would take their fantastical worries seriously. He supposed he should do, as it could end very badly for him if Thor really thought Loki's suggestion of such treatment was a manipulation.

He knew that Thor might accept well enough Loki's untrustworthiness as part of the cost of war, the cost of enslaving one who was too strongly his own self to be truly enslaved, as part of this game they were playing, the game that had turned into something else now.

Loki thought Thor might accept Loki making a fool of him by pretending vulnerability or even playing with his love. But using it to deliberately undermine the core of who Thor was, well, that was the most dangerous outcome possible for Loki, really. He felt a faraway pang of anxiety in his stomach, but floating as he was on a sea of soothing pain and pleasure remembered and soothing pain and pleasure to come, he couldn't bring himself to care right then.

He heard the tent flap drop shut behind him as Thor rid himself of the intruders, and yelped in pain as he was jolted upwards by a pair of large hands around his neck. Kneeling on the mattress, he gripped Thor's wrists weakly, wondering if the sudden change in position had caused tearing in intimate, bruised places.

"So what was this, Laufeyson? This night of debasement? A game?"

Was the man stupid? Loki could only choke out the words around the pressure on his throat.

"Yes. A game. One I trusted you to play."

He looked Thor in the eye, knowing that Thor would see his anger and exasperation there.

Thor held his gaze for a moment, and then threw him back on the bed where he swallowed convulsively and groaned again at the brushfire that blazed in his abused ass. Definitely a few tender injuries invisible to the eye to be added to the count.

Loki tried sweet reason. "If what we did together last nights offends you now, I will not suggest such as this again. If you wish me punished for your own reasons, turn me over to someone else. I'm sure you don't want for people in this camp who would like to beat or whip me or vengeance-fuck me, and bloodily at that."

He looked up at Thor, who loomed over him stone-faced, and couldn't help throwing a sharp trickster smile at him.

"I do enjoy upsetting your friends though. Even bruised, fucked and bound as I am, they think I control the King of Asgard. Was ever a man with so few weapons so feared by so mighty as they?"

He laughed again, followed by another groan escaping his clenched teeth.

Thor glared at him for a moment, grabbed his hair and pulled his head back.

Finally, too late, fear slammed into Loki, and he knew it was writ large across his face and body. Suddenly the pain in his scalp and the increasing pain from last night's play seemed very secondary to the threat of his master's anger. In that moment, Loki knew again that the reality was no matter what had happened between them, he was owned, body if not quite soul by Thor.

He whispered, perhaps to himself, perhaps to Thor, "You were truly my master last night, my prince, and I truly your thrall. Tell me you did not enjoy it as much as I."

Thor stilled for a moment, frowning.

Suddenly, Loki felt a wave of anger wash over him too. Who was this spoilt princeling, this large, stupid aristocratic oaf, this temporary king, to take his own joy and satisfaction at the debasement of a willing other at his hands and afterwards throw it back in his partner's face as if it was not a gift both of them crafted together for each other?

Who was this self-righteous Aesir asshole to question Loki's sincerity in wholly offering himself, physically and mentally, to make it a source of shame and suspicion?

_Fuck_ this childish god, this self-indulgent, arrogant get of Odin!

He met Thor's angry eyes again, and spat in one. The right one. May it turn as blind as Odin's.

With a snarl, Thor flung Loki's head back towards the mattress, wiping his eye. Loki bit down on his lip and hissed to stop his keening at the physical aches that was threatening to overwhelm the other hot, tangled, miserable feelings that swirled in him. Thor no longer wanted, appreciated or deserved the sounds Loki made as a result of their game, their competition, their mutual need for pain and satisfaction last night.

He had rejected the thing they had made together, this one and only thing that could be said to have been made by them together as equals.

Loki managed to breathe out the pain instead of yelping, and did not cry. He tried to scramble backwards off the bed, ignoring the pain now.

If only he could get out of Thor's reach perhaps Thor would overreact and simply destroy him quickly and without further humiliation.

Loki was too slow though. He closed his eyes and did not disgrace himself by yelping in fear as Thor's large hand closed over his left forearm to yank him close.

He felt himself falling, and hissed again as he felt another large hand grab him by his bruised shoulder to pull him across the bed.

He was forced against Thor's broad chest as the hand left his forearm and clamped around his other shoulder instead. Then he did cry out as he felt Thor's mouth brush the right side of his face, moving hot and wet down to his mouth where Loki's cry was smothered by Thor's rough, demanding kiss.

Loki squirmed in shock, gasping as Thor broke the kiss. Loki threw his arms around Thor's own neck to keep his balance and try to recover his mental equilibrium as well. Thor took the opportunity to move his hand to Loki's tender, bruised oh so fucking painful buttock. Aaagh.

Thor moved his mouth to Loki's ear. "I should not have doubted you or myself. I felt your trust, Loki. I did not expect it and do not deserve it but I will keep it if you let me. "

Loki attempted a trickster smile as his heart thumped, but thought he only managed sadness in it, or bitterness.

He was on firm ground again at least. The firm ground of Thor's unrelenting hold on him.

"I may never have need to trust you again, Thunderer. Enjoy this while it lasts."

Thor kissed him again.

Thor and his companions headed to open ground to meet with Laufey and his retinue. Sif wondered aloud if it was a trap, and Thor saw Loki bite his lip, whether to stop himself saying aloud _It's most certainly a trap_, or simply at the discomfort he was no doubt experiencing in riding, Thor could not tell.

Loki had warned Thor that both Loki and Laufey would do as necessary for the good of their realm. No doubt Loki was privately cursing Thor for a stubborn oaf for continuing along this path. Thor looked at the Asgardian army that they had at their backs.

He.could not understand what Loki was worried about. Of course Laufey was not to be trusted, but he could not possibly have a strategy at this stage to defeat the Asgardian army as assembled outside Utgard now.

Why Laufey had not deployed the Casket of Winters in the war was beyond Thor's knowledge but he could only guess it was because the Frost Giants had lost the knowledge of its use during the centuries it had been kept from them in Asgard, or perhaps Odin had bound it somehow.

In which case it should matter not to them that Thor was to demand it be returned to him, and placed back in the vaults of the Palace of Asgard, as Odin would have wished.

It was among Thor's dearest wishes to win the war by returning the Casket of Winters to the safety of the Vault in Asgard, gutting Jotunheim's ability to rise against Asgard again, preferably before Odin emerged from his sleep. What a triumph that would be to present to his father.

Thor had fought long for this day, sacrificed for it, done terrible things on the journey, but victory would make it all worth it. Though the victory he would have to accept here today looked different than he had dreamed, to be sure.

He would demand of Laufey to return the Casket of Winters in accordance with the treaty that ended the last war between Asgard and Jotunheim, of course. But he would offer to immediately treat again for its return to Jotunheim.

Surely Laufey could see the benefits of wielding the Casket openly with the assent of Asgard. Surely with Loki advising him, Laufey would be wiser than to only use it as a weapon against Asgard. They could come to some kind of understanding, he knew they could. The Allfather would be proud of his son for bringing a more permanent peace to fruition. Loki would be pleased that Jotunheim could start rebuilding.

And then Thor could seek an out from this cursed binding and begin to make restitution to Loki.

In the meantime, he kept adding to his debt to Loki.

Soon, very soon, victory was coming and it would all be over, and he could begin again with Loki.

The Jotunn delegation were already present outside the city, dismounted from their monstrous rides. This boded well, no games, showing instead respect. The one at the front had the look of a king. Laufey, then.

Loki's king, the king he served for all that Thor was Loki's master. Loki's sire in all meanings of the word. A father who abandoned his stunted son to die, but raised him anyway in parallel with his officially acknowledged heirs. Loving his strange, gifted son, and willing to sacrifice him for his realm. Thor supposed this was the lot of monarchs and their children.

He looked at Loki, expecting to see the sorcerer's customary expression of detachment, but Loki looked nervous in the face of a reunion of sorts with his father. He suddenly looked young and untried, completely uncertain. Thor brushed a pang of guilt away as he thought how humiliated he would feel in similar circumstances, paraded before Odin as a slave of the Jotunn, in Jotunn garb. Again he was reminded of how truly awful this thing was that he had done to Loki.

He took a deep breath and put the thought aside. It would be all worth it for a victory here today. He could start trying to repay his debt to Loki then. Thor tried to make out Laufey's features at a distance, did Loki resemble him in any way? It occurred to Thor that Loki wore a form that was not his own.

He knew the beautiful pale Aesir that Loki appeared to be was a form chosen by Loki the shapeshifter, Loki the chameleon trickster, Loki the seducer. He did not know what Loki truly looked like. It did not matter to Thor, it was the man himself he wanted, but he found himself desiring to know Loki's real face. And the many other things he did not know about Loki.

He supposed he could see an older Loki in Laufey's features, a more cruel Loki. They shared a noble bearing too, an aristocratic tilt of the head that Thor had noticed in Loki at times that he had not thought to question further. Thor wondered if Loki had inherited his prowling walk too from Laufey. _Father and son certainly share a hatred of Asgard_, Thor reminded himself.

For all his dire warnings of his own treachery, Thor's sorcerer was bound not to harm Thor or what belonged to Thor, and that was that. Laufey could not use Loki against Asgard, and Loki could not act against Asgard. Thor glanced back at the Asgardian army far behind him and placed his hand on Mjolnir at his waist.

He reached across to the sorcerer and cupped his face. "It will all be well, sorcerer."

"Not if I can help it, Thunderer," hissed Loki. "Thor, do not do this. Laufey is more devious than you can imagine, and I will do all I can to help him with whatever he is planning. _This is madness_."

"Enough, Loki. This is almost done."

Loki hesitated and looked away.

"Come," said Thor. "We can do this together if you wish. Do you not want this damnable war to finally end?"

Loki was still avoiding Thor's eye until he suddenly he wasn't and in the brief moment of contact that Loki allowed, Thor saw anguish and anger. Thor moved his hand away. Loki took a moment to visibly recover himself and dismounted to walk towards the waiting committee.

Laufey watched as the Thunderer tipped his eldest son's face towards himself and spoke. He couldn't read what was said but saw Odinson drop his hand as Loki squared his shoulders and started to walk towards Laufey and his courtiers. Thor snapped an order at his retinue and he and a woman heeled Loki. They stopped about twenty paces away, Odinson and the woman on either side of Loki.

His firstborn, his never-born, his clever, sensitive, curious, gifted son. Cursed with a sense of duty and loyalty that Laufey was not sure that he deserved to be the subject of, as either father or as king. Laufey's heart would break if he allowed himself to dwell on what Loki must have endured under the Odinson's yoke, the atrocities he had been forced to commit against his own people, the bending of the neck to his lesser in character and in honour.

His heart was already broken at the thought of what more Loki would endure before this was done.

But the Thunderer would suffer directly as a result if it all fell into place. _I will have my vengeance._

Not hesitant now, Loki spoke. He turned first to the Thunderer and the warrior and asked them quietly to allow him to approach a few more steps alone. The Odinson nodded grimly. Loki separated from the two and bent the knee. "Well met, my king," he said.

"So formal, Loki?" Laufey responded and held out his arms to invite an embrace.

Loki stood but did not approach. "It is a formal occasion is it not, Father?"

The woman inhaled sharply. The Odinson had not told her, one of his trusted companions. Interesting.

"Byliestr is dead, your majesty," Loki said. "Your heir, your favourite, is dead. And by my hand, by his own brother's hand, more or less, forced to turn against him."

Loki was aiming to wound, then. Laufey heard the rebuke in his voice. Laufey lowered his arms.

So. Loki suspected that Laufey had orchestrated his capture by the Thunderer. Perhaps Loki also felt there was no embrace for a fratricide in the arms of their father. He was wrong about that, of course he was, but Laufey would not push him until it was apposite to do so.

"Helblindi too is dead, Loki. And by my hand, more or less. We have more to discuss than I had hoped, my son."

Loki looked at the ground.

Laufey closed the distance between them, provoking a defensive position from the Thunderer and his warrior. Laufey ignored them and cupped Loki's face in both hands as he spoke, his gentle grip undoing Loki's shapechanging seidr, bringing to the fore his Jotunn form.

Thor watched carefully as Laufey approached, as imposing as he was large, stopping and smiling a curiously familiar smile which broadened into an all too familiar smirk as Loki's Aesir form was washed away by something more primal, but strangely no less Loki. Thor saw the resemblance between father and son more clearly now. He inhaled sharply as he realised what the deaths of the first and second princes meant.

"Loki is now the heir to the crown of Jotunheim," he hissed.

Laufey laughed a quiet laugh. "Loki Lightbringer, Skytreader, Netweaver, Liesmith, Silvertongue, Light-As-Air is meant for a greater destiny than sitting on my mundane throne, boy, and certainly destined to be more than your thrall."

Thor's companions muttered angrily at the belittlement of their king but Thor said nothing.

"I daresay you already know this, Odinson. Come. You are welcome under my roof. We will speak of a permanent peace between us, and perhaps destiny."


	22. Wishes

Loki stood before his king, a subject of the crown in both intent and in appearance. Laufey did not care what form Loki walked in, Loki knew, but it felt more respectful to stand as his father had made him at this moment. Something in him wanted to display to Thor his birth form too, even if it was no longer how Loki saw himself in his mind's eye.

_Do you want me now, Thunderer, would you truly offer yourself and your kingdom to a Jotunn?_

He thought he knew the answer, hoped he was not wrong.

Because Loki could use it.

And use it he would.

For Loki's sake, Thor was already hesitating to rampage through Utgard

For Loki's sake, Thor would negotiate a peace that was generous to the Jotunn.

Especially if Loki was heir to the kingdom. But that was a lie. Laufey lied, Loki was sure of it.

Loki was certain that Helblindi lived, whatever his father said in Thor's presence.

With Laufey's lie about Helblindi, Loki began to understand that Laufey really_ had_ planned for Loki's capture by Asgard. Laufey had at the very least hoped for it, waiting for Loki to become at worst a useful tool of Thor's army, ideally a honey-trap in Thor's tent, as surely as Loki had played his unwitting part.

With Laufey's named heirs both supposedly dead, the King of Asgard had been maneuvered into thinking that he had Laufey's only remaining child under his heel.

Two reasons now for Thor to stay his hammer; for the love of Loki, and to preserve Jotunheim for its future king, his thrall and love.

What else would Laufey dangle in front of Thor before closing the jaws of his trap?

_Ah_, thought Loki,_ the Casket. _

_Has Laufey already won?_

Loki raised his eyes back to meet his father's. Laufey took Loki's hands in his and smiled first with affection, and then knowingly. Father and son had always understood each other, or so Loki had thought until recently.

Loki knew he should be relieved by his father's shaping of events, happy even. Perhaps Jotunheim would not be left a ruined husk by the Thunderer. He still could not guess at the Laufey's end play, but if Thor danced to his tune, they would all soon find out.

Loki had only to persuade Thor to accept when Laufey offered him everything he wanted.

"So do you bring my scapegrace son home to me, Odinson?" Laufey looked amused. "Or is Loki part of the reparations you seek for the war _you_ have pressed upon _us_? I am sure you both had much sport in your attempts to tame him. A rose with thorns, indeed."

"Did you mean for Loki to be captured and enslaved?" demanded Thor. He was beginning to see other similarities between Loki and Laufey, less tangible ones than appearances, and far more important. Laufey too was a player of the long game. But unlike Loki, he treated people as pieces on a gamesboard.

"Your father wouldn't have had to ask," replied Laufey.

Thor tried not to respond to this lie presented as simple truth, but he knew he snarled. Laufey and Odin were cut from the same cloth, to some degree, Thor knew, but Odin would not have deliberately sacrificed his children. Would he?

Laufey smiled and continued to address Thor. "Loki has always been willing to pay the cost."

Loki dropped his hands from his father's. A shadow of regret passed across Laufey's features.

"I have paid, Father." Loki sounded bitter and defeated. "I have paid. And paid, and paid."

"I know, boy. And there is yet more to pay, I fear. Come, Thunderer. We should speak in the comfort of the palace. If you wish, gather your companions to accompany you, I will not object. My son is your creature and your army surrounds us, is that not so? Your safety could not be more assured."

Thor scoffed. "What is to stop me from destroying you here and now, Laufey? Utgard is mine for the taking. I have no need of treaty nor any desire to walk into your parlor to be devoured like a fly."

Thor noted the slight change in Loki's posture which indicated he was readying to summon seidr.

Thor tested their binding, pressured it, knowing Loki would feel it and hate him for it, but he had to ascertain that the sorcerer was not a threat. For his sake as well as Thor's.

Loki suppressed a grimace as Thor threatened to break the agreement to treat in a fit of apparent pique._ Thor may escape this yet_. Part of him dearly hoped that the Thunderer would take the Casket and go home. Instead, a confrontation was building. Loki prepared to skywalk away, with either Laufey or Thor, he was not sure whom. He felt Thor push at the binding, testing.

Loki tried to mentally shrug him away. _Get off, Thunderer_. _You do not need to prod me to obey. _

At least Thor was not entirely trusting of Loki. He had paid _some_ attention to Loki's warnings.

Laufey responded to Thor. "If you wish to break the treaty-peace we agreed here, Thunderer, I cannot stop you. The Allfather would have thought twice about such a thing. Come, your majesty. I offer no false welcome. As proof of good faith, I present to you the Casket of Winters, my people's ancestral treasure and birthright, for safekeeping by your people to guarantee your safety in my palace. And of course should you feel the need to defend yourself, you have my son by your side to act as you direct."

At Laufey's gesture, two of his retinue brought the Casket of Winters on a trestle and set it between them. Loki doubted anyone missed the gleam in Thor's eye at the sight of it.

However, what he said was, "It seems Loki did not find his silvertongue by hunting along the banks of a river, King Laufey. The Casket is the property of Asgard by right. Or do you continue to ignore the treaty you made with my father?"

"The Allfather is not here to discuss that, Odinson, but the King of Asgard is." Laufey was almost purring now. "The Allfather's secrets and lies are for another day. This has been your war; make your peace now. Do you wish to make it by violence, or by eminence?"

Thor's eyes flicked to Loki. Loki could feel his gaze weighing, measuring. Perhaps it had been a mistake to wear his Jotunn skin; Thor was most likely to do as Loki wished if he saw his lover before him, not an enemy. _Curse my sentiment. I should have thought only of guiding Thor, not pleasing my father_. _Laufey would have thought this through and remained appealing to his lover's eyes if it would win him the tiniest advantage._

Nevertheless, Loki saw the decision on Thor's face. Loki turned away so Thor could not see his own expression. Whether it was sadness or triumph upon it, he could not allow the Thunderer to see.

Laufey lay a hand on Loki's shoulder, brow furrowed, realisation in his eyes. Sadness, then. Loki's regret at Thor's inevitable fate here was clear to Laufey. _Father knows_.

Thor spoke. "Loki. Take possession of the Casket in my name and keep it safe for Asgard. You and I will accompany King Laufey to his palace."

Loki could not credit the stupidity of Thor. The arrogance. Why had he not listened to Loki?

Thor believed he was about to win everything he had wanted and more; victory in Jotunheim, the Casket at his disposal, Loki in his bed and eventually on the throne in Utgard.

Everything he wanted.

Loki approached the trestle with reverence, its warrior guards snapping to attention at his approach and bowing slightly to their King's eldest son. He acknowledged them and moved around so he was facing Thor, the Casket between them. He carefully lifted the Casket, gazed at in wonder a moment, opened a pocket dimension and flipped the Casket inside.

He stood, hands behind his back, a prince of Jotunheim, awaiting further instructions from his master the King of Asgard.

Sif was deeply unhappy with Thor's decision to go to Utgard alone and made no bones of it to him. Thor waved away her objections; he had Mjolnir at his belt and was more than capable of defending himself against the remains of the Jotunn army. Besides, did he not have the greatest weapon of the Jotunn at his disposal, and their most powerful warrior-sorcerer bound to him, at his call.

Sif and the Warriors Three insisted on waiting at the gates of the city for his return. By the time everyone had mounted their horses, Loki had assumed Aesir form again. The Jotunn delegation rode to the palace in silence, Laufey at the head of his retinue, Thor and Loki at either side of him.

Thor had set aside the knowledge that Byliestr, the general tortured by his troops and released from his pain by Loki, had been Loki's brother and the crown prince. His sorcerer was made up of layers upon layers of secrets. He would deal with it later. Laufey claimed to have killed his second heir also. Thor did not know what to make of that. Loki had been distressed by the news.

Thor had not believed the Frost Giants capable of such tender affection not too long ago. Murdering their sons and brothers fit in much more with his previous estimation of them. Thor remembered the fondness on Laufey's face as he held Loki's hands in his own. Today he had stood mere paces from the King of Jotunheim, observing the king's loving reunion with Loki, his son. How different to Thor's fantasies in which he charged Laufey and rode him down, destroying him with Mjolnir and not a word exchanged between them.

Instead he rode to the palace in Utgard by his side to negotiate peace. Just to please his sorcerer, and perhaps makes some amends for the horrors Thor had perpetrated. _Perpetrated in prosecution of just war against an aggressor_, an inner voice said. He wanted to believe it. He was no longer sure that he did.

Nevertheless. He would go back to Asgard triumphant, Jotunheim defeated and ready to negotiate a true peace for the return of the Casket. Perhaps eventually, Jotunheim might have a true ally to Asgard on the throne if Thor could keep Loki's regard. His father would be pleased enough with the first two when he awoke from his slumber. His mother would be proud, and perhaps pleased that he had given his heart to one she had shown fondness for and who would prove a good political match.

Thor would pursue a just peace with Jotunheim. He was sure he knew what that looked like.

Loki walked through his father's palace still in the garb of the Einherjar. Rooms worthy of the king of Asgard had been offered to Thor upon arrival at the palace, but Loki was not surprised to see Thor turn to him with a question in his eyes. "The king of Asgard will be staying in my apartments," Loki told the household staff. He turned to Thor. "A moment with King Laufey, please."

Thor nodded and stepped out of earshot, but kept close enough to give orders. He seemed at ease enough despite his surroundings. Fool.

"Give me tonight, Father. Just tonight."

Laufey looked at him, weighing him, measuring him, deciding the worth of this gift requested by his son.

He nodded. "Tomorrow morning, then. Remember your blood, Loki."

Loki said nothing. He bowed to the king and bade him goodnight.

"Sleep well, Thunderer," Laufey said. "We will speak in the morning, at Prince Loptr's request." Thor inclined his head minutely. Laufey laughed and swept away.

They walked in silence to Loki's rooms.


	23. Secrets and Lies

Thor did not notice exactly when Loki removed the visible evidence of their play of the previous night; but the bruises had faded as if they had never been. Neither did he notice Loki's change from the green and gold of Asgard to the dull reds and blues of Jotunn garb, the style Loki had been captured in. Loki's gait too changed to something less prowling, something more relaxed and centred, more regal.

Somehow, Thor had found himself walking the large, empty corridors of the palace of Laufey beside a stranger called Loptr.

Certainly, many among the palace household staff called him that as they walked towards Loki's apartments. Most offered short bows as they passed and spoke quick words of welcome to Prince Loptr, not breaking stride as they went about their duties. Loki acknowledged them with a nod.

Some called out 'Loki-prince!' and stopped to grasp his hands with theirs and enquire after him. Loki stopped for a moment and exchanged words with each one, promising more time later if possible.

None looked at Thor; though he felt their awareness of him. He felt invisible and elephantine at the same time. He did not know how to deal with their fear and their hate and was glad he did not have to properly face it then and there.

Finally they arrived at apartments that felt seldom-used if at all, though the space was dust-free and well maintained. Thor walked around the rooms for a few moments, not seeing much of the Loki he knew reflected there. _ How did a flower like Loki bloom in a dull place like this?_

He felt guilt thinking it; perhaps he did not understand Loki as well as he thought.

Then again, why did Loki wear his Aesir form by default, why were these rooms so obviously abandoned by him?

This was not Loki's home, not really. Thor thought he knew Loki enough to know that.

The beginnings of a fire were in the grate, to Thor's relief. A knock came to the door before Thor could initiate conversation, and Loki welcomed with a smile the servant who delivered a meal. Thor could hear them murmuring by the doors and pushed down an irrational surge of jealousy at the easy intimacy.

_I have barely known him yet, these are members of his father's household who probably tended him even as a babe_. Thor understood such obligations, and the affections that could develop over a lifetime of service.

They ate dinner in silence, much like many of the meals they had shared in Thor's tent. But the silence seemed much larger in this place.

After they were finished, Loki leaned over and kissed Thor, a gentle probing kiss that became passionate. Thor did not remember Loki initiating a kiss before. Loki was the first to break it, and he stood looking down at Thor, Thor's face cupped in his long, beautiful fingers.

Thor wondered if Loki was aware of his new physical attitude, his instinctive dominance of the space around and between them. He had never looked down at Thor before, never cupped Thor's face as if Thor was the submissive partner. Thor placed his hand on Loki's, gently took it from where it lay along his jaw and kissed the palm. He was not sure what Loki desired of him, but he knew he would give it.

He took a deep breath, and did not gulp, and asked Loki, "So...how do you want me?"

Loki looked taken aback for a moment, then laughed, and sat down on Thor's lap. Thor was sure he kept his face expressionless, but Loki laughed again, wrapped his arms around him and kissed Thor as sweetly and deeply as Thor had ever been kissed. "Submissiveness would suit you ill, my prince," he smiled against Thor's mouth as he broke the kiss. "It pleases me to offer my submission to you. Why would I want yours? I already have you dangling from strings."

Thor felt his own arousal against the leather of his trousers and shifted Loki's position slightly so it was in contact with Loki's thigh, and held his sorcerer tightly with a hand pressed against the small of Loki's back as he knew the sorcerer liked.

They stayed kissing and touching for some time, minding Thor of a time before he was ready to do more with a play partner. It was strangely innocent, especially considering the circumstances. Thor knew this might be their last night together, and even possibly simply his own last night as a free man or a whole one, and if asked, he would have been quick to assure anyone who wanted to know that if he knew he was to die, he would spend a wild time before, carousing and talking and laughing and fucking the night away.

But he now found that he had all he wanted in his arms, on his lap, and even words were unnecessary.

Later, on Loki's large bed, still clothed, still no more said than Loki's answer to Thor, and still no more than kisses between them, Thor could no longer ignore the truth of their -his- circumstances. Thor felt the compulsion to ask as he was still unsure.

"Which version of Loki am I getting tonight?"

Loki half-sat and leaned over him, looking down, green eyes brilliant in the blue-tinted light.

"Just Loki, my prince. Just as you want it...do you not?"

Thor murmured "Loki...is there any such thing as 'just' Loki? You are a kaleidoscope wonder, my love. Always changing and many-faceted and beautiful."

Loki grinned, pleased, and started to remove his clothes in that slightly leisurely way he did when he wanted to tease Thor, very different to his usual efficient strip. Loki had seduced Thor in part by drip-feeding him these moments during their time together in the Asgardian camp, and Thor's deep and slow-burning desire for Loki this evening began to be overshadowed by sadness that this might be the last time that the sorcerer dangled Thor at the end of puppet strings. How delicious it had been to have Loki manipulate his every twitch and gasp.

Thor felt his anger rising. It had been simmering since Laufey had looked him up and down in the first moments of their meeting as if Thor was a domesticated animal at market to be inspected and brought home for the feast day slaughter. No doubt that Laufey thought the reasons that Thor had accepted Laufey's invitation into the palace was because Laufey too had seduced Thor with his promises of peace and glory and suggestions of Loki as Thor's alone and as king of Jotunheim by Thor's side.

Laufey lied.

To Loki first, and to Loki foremost. Loki had danced to Laufey's tune and it had led both he and Thor to this awful place.

Thor was a man of his word. He had made a promise to Loki, that Loki was _his _and that no-one would stand in the way of that, not even Loki. He had made the promise in the heat of the moment, one of those precious moments when Loki had made a slave of him, he had meant it then, and he meant it still.

Laufey's lies were not going to keep them apart.

He growled, and Loki startled, half-way through removing his clothes. Thor reached out and grabbed Loki, pulling him half-clothed on top of Thor and started kissing him again, roughly this time.

He felt Loki smile and in between urgent, snatched, rough kisses and bites, Loki murmured "I wondered how long your temper would hold. What roused it?"

"Lies," growled Thor. "Your father's lies." Loki stilled. "Ah," he said. "If you did not believe Laufey-king's lies, why are you here? In the palace? In my bed?"

"Not the lies that _I_ was to believe," Thor looked up at Loki. "The lies _you_ were to believe. And did, for some time."

Loki sat up, straddled across Thor's thighs. "The Casket," he said. Thor looked at him, waiting. Loki reluctantly continued. "Laufey lied to me about having the Casket. From the very beginning. He waited until after my capture to tell me. I don't understand why. Nor what he had to gain from my capture."

"Me," said Thor plainly. "Or my father. Laufey wanted revenge for his humiliation in defeat by Odin. So he stole the Casket back to draw Asgard to Jotunheim. Instead of using the Casket to restore his realm and aid his army, he hid it, pretending Jotunheim to be an entirely innocent victim in this war. And sacrificing the good of his realm, the good of his people, his soldiers and his son in pursuit of revenge against Odin, or Odin's son in his place."

Loki shook his head slightly, raised an eyebrow. "No, Thor. For all of Laufey's machinations, I refuse to believe he would abandon his duties to his people for his own selfish gain."

Thor had to be careful, or he would drive Loki away. Away and towards Laufey, who bore Loki no good will in this.

"Then why did he not tell you, his son, his favourite? Have you not acted as counsellor to King Laufey? What would you have counselled him if you knew that he had rescued the Casket?"

Loki was silent. Thor knew he knew, but perhaps Loki could not bear the knowing. If Loki was strong enough to accept it, Thor had some chance of surviving the night. Otherwise, he might find himself facing the wrath not just of the throne of Jotunheim, but the wrath of its newest, youngest god.

And his love.

Loki looked him in the eye. "If my father had told me of it, I would have counselled him as you say. To use it to restore the realm, to aid our army. To defeat Asgard. To defeat Odin. To defeat you."

"And you might have," replied Thor. "You might have defeated Asgard. More likely we would have fought to a standstill, and a peace eventually made. Some sacrifices made on both sides, justice done, peace restored. A suspicious and uneasy peace to be sure, but each realm eventually free to pursue prosperity without undue concern for the actions of the other. But this is not what Laufey wants."

Loki grimaced. "You are trying to manipulate me, Thunderer."

Thor had no reply to this except to say sadly, "No, Loki."

Loki jumped off the bed and began to pull on his tunic. "So, so you are telling me that my father, my father the _king_, orchestrated a bloody war against his own people to bring you here, to this place at this time, for...for _petty revenge_? Really, Thunderer? That he waited until I was inevitably captured so he could spring his trap, so I could lead you here by the cock, is that it? You think so little of Laufey, Thunderer, and so much of yourself and your own value!"

Thor sat up in the bed and said nothing.

Loki was panting now, green eyes full of fury and unshed tears.

"He knew I would bring you here so that he could liberate his realm and finally force peace on Asgard! I have been willing to pay the price for my people, Asgardian, willing to do my duty as a son. And you will pay the price too. For what you've done to my people, you will pay. It is my duty to see that you do. _I will do my duty_."

Loki turned on his heel and made for the doors. Thor was frozen in horror and heartbreak. He could do nothing to repair this.

Before he knew it, he heard himself say "You would leave me alone tonight, Loki?"

Loki did not turn around. "I cannot look at you. I have not had a moment alone since you bound me, you are always there at the edge of my perception. Though I welcome it, and thought it would break my heart to lose it, much as I hate and despise and rage against it -and _you_!- but I cannot wait to be rid of it." He turned now and he did look at Thor.

"And rid of you."

He slammed the door.


	24. Plain Truth

Loki tried to stalk through the palace but found himself merely hurrying instead, almost stumbling if he did not think to place one foot in front of the other. His anger was directed at himself, firstly, for throwing a near-tantrum at Thor. _Childish_. He did not know why he felt so discombobulated, so on the back foot, so _unsettled_. He did not like that feeling, so he leaned into the anger instead.

His body however clearly was not as skilled as his mind in ignoring his feelings. He managed to stop himself from careering into a startled servant.

That Laufey would indulge petty personal revenge in favour of the care due to his realm. That he would prolong and worsen his people's suffering. The very _thought_. Loki quivered in anger. Towards Thor. Definitely towards Thor.

Thor had already taken so much from him. Loki would not let Thor take his father from him too.

Loki knew though that Thor was too bluff and straightforward to use manipulation for advantage. It was not his nature. Thor had spoken what he thought was truth to Loki. It was not his fault. Thor did not know or understand Laufey, the father or the king, as Loki did. That was all.

It was a misunderstanding. Of course Thor wanted for Laufey to be the great deceiver, it would allow Loki to make the choice that Thor wanted him to make. Thor wanted Loki to reject his father and all of his works, for Loki to abandon his people and his duty and to choose Thor. So Thor chose to believe that Laufey's intentions were ill, driven by selfishness and not by the same sense of duty that he and Loki shared.

Thor was not deliberately lying. But what he said were lies.

Of course Laufey had lured Thor to his palace and doom, and he had used Loki to do so. These were the actions of a king in warfare, using all of the tools and weapons at his disposal. And what was Loki if not Laufey's greatest tool, his secret weapon? Laufey had known that if it was possible, Loki would survive capture and enslavement in the Asgardian tents, even if it meant having to beg for Thor's cock.

It was a sacrifice that Laufey made as a father and as a king for the good of the realm. He had sacrificed Loki _for the good of the realm_.

Laufey had known that Loki would lead Thor here, to Thor's own capture, his humiliation and his use as a pawn of Jotunheim to bring Asgard to its knees. It was no more than Thor deserved, and the cost Asgard deserved to pay. For the good of Jotunheim. Laufey had always acted for the good of his realm.

So why had Laufey not deployed their most powerful weapon, the birthright of Jotunn since time immemorial, the Casket that Laufey had shamefully given up in defeat and shamelessly stole back in the night? Loki had always known that his father had provoked this war by encouraging the 'renegade' assault on the Weapons Vault of Asgard. It had been an act of desperation by a king who could no longer watch his land die beneath his feet because of the absence of the heart of his realm. Laufey had gambled on on the recovery of the Casket, and had lost.

But Laufey had not lost, had he. The mission had succeeded. At least one of those young warriors had escaped and brought back the Casket. That warrior should have been lauded as a hero, but Laufey had deemed that the success of the mission be kept secret.

Loki refused to admit to himself that the young warrior whose bravery and resourcefulness had recovered the Casket for his people was likely dead at Laufey's word if not by Laufey's own hand after presenting the Casket to the king. For the good of the realm. Because the recovery of the Casket had to be kept secret. Because...why? Loki did not understand. But he was not king, and was not privy to the reasoning of the king. The king whose responsibility was the good of the realm.

Loki found himself on the roof of the palace. It was a freezing night so he fetched some furs rather than endure. He was sick of enduring. Twice in recent days he had feared for his life at Thor's hands, as well as feeling Thor's intense love, desire and need for Loki. All forced upon him. So what if he was feeling the same for Thor? He was heartsick of the subjugation and the fear and everything the damn bond forced on him. He could feel Thor's need tugging at their bond even now. He could feel his own need for Thor.

The closer he got to Thor, the more dangerous it was for both of them, the bond fostered suspicion and fear while it forced closeness.

Laufey had promised to free Loki from the bond when he and Loki had spoken just after Thor had loosened Loki's leash a little, and Loki knew he would feel such relief from its dissolution. Relief that he would not have to endure through the bond Thor's suffering at Laufey's hands.

Thor's pain and humiliation would be Thor's to endure alone. Alone.

Loki could feel his heart breaking.

He sat and watched the light from the hundreds of fires in the Asgardian camp that surrounded the palace.

Thor remained on Loki's bed for a time, looking at the crystal-flecked ceiling. He did not know how else he could have handled ...what had just happened. Thor stood up, deciding that he would not wait in Loki's room like a rabbit waiting to be pounced on. He had willingly walked into this beast's den by Loki's side, and it would not be long before the beast descended on its prey. But Thor was nobody's hunt.

Knowing he would not find Loki unless Loki allowed it, he nevertheless started to walk the corridors of the palace of Jotunheim. They were strangely empty, unlike earlier when many servants had scurried by as he and Loki strode along. He could see servants ahead of him at junctures in the corridors but by the time he arrived at that point, there was no-one to be seen. He felt eyes watching him nonetheless.

As he expected, Laufey rose before him like a demon in a shadow play. He raised an eyebrow at Thor and in an enquiring tone asked "Have you lost your way, Thunderer? Your wanderings are disrupting my household."

Thor tried for politeness. "I am looking for Loki, King Laufey. I spoke words to him that he found ill and I would apologise if I could."

Laufey looked irritated. "You will wander the rest of the night unless Loki decides otherwise."

Thor was exasperated now. "Then I will persist in the hope that he decides so."

Laufey sighed. "He will be on the roof. As he ever was as a boy when upset. Dreaming of walking the skies and escaping this dull place."

Thor knew he could not keep the surprise from his face.

Laufey smiled and said "I would not have you between my son and myself after this night, Odinson, so make your peace with him if you can. His anger towards you would only shift to me once you are...no longer our guest. If you knew anything of your bond with him -the one _you_ imposed on you both!- you would know that it can lead you to him."

Thor allowed his awareness to shift to the bond and sure enough, he could sense Loki nearby. He poked the bond tentatively and felt it quiver. He sensed Loki's annoyance too. Well. He had one opportunity to make this right somehow.

But first. Thor too had his duty.

"Laufey."

A half smile graced the King of Jotunheim's face. He loomed over Thor, not deliberately intimidating now but imposing and regal. Thor was minded of his own father for a moment.

"Why did you lie to Loki?'

Laufey laughed. "Of which lie do you speak?"

Thor gritted his teeth. "The Casket, Laufey. Why did you lie about the Casket? You have had it since the war began, and did not tell Loki."

Laufey grew serious. "Loki wishes to win a victory for Jotunheim. I wish to defeat Asgard. As king, I decide the goal, and the strategy. And that is more truth than you deserve."

Thor nodded. "I thought so. And you wish harm to me, a guest of treaty in your house?"

Thor hoped dearly that Laufey would withdraw guestright, or admit that he meant Thor harm, or act to injure him, so Thor could consider the treaty talks violated and unleash himself on Laufey.

Laufey wore that half smile again. "No, King Thor. I would not harm a hair on your head. It would hurt my son so. And you know that I speak the truth again."

Thor did not relax. It was not the plain truth, he knew it. Like many of Loki's truths, neither of Laufey's assertions were entirely true. But he could not pick his way through these mazes.

_Well, nothing to be done about it now._ He nodded at Laufey and made for the stairs. He could feel Laufey watch him leave.

The bitter cold hit Thor before he even ascended the final set of steps to the roof. He approached Loki but did not sit. Loki was staring at the horizon, and Thor thought Loki was going to ignore him entirely when Loki, still not looking at him, pointed at a mountain in the distance.

"That's where we spent last night. Where we...made love. I don't think I've ever been happier, or more sad."

Thor sat, then. "I did not want to provoke you just now."

Loki looked at him. "Ah, my prince. You are not stupid, but so obtuse sometimes."

Thor grimaced, and then grinned, and then _shivered_. Loki made a noise, and took his furs to drape around Thor. Thor watched as Loki shifted to his Jotunn form to better cope with the cold. He was no less beautiful in this form, if somewhat alien, or perhaps exotic. They were silent together for a few moments.

Tentatively, Thor asked, "May I touch you?"

Loki was looking at the horizon again and murmured, "That would not be wise."

Because he would not welcome the touch, or because Jotunn skin could be dangerous to Aesir? Thor reached out his hand from underneath the fur and slowly moved it to touch Loki's, giving Loki ample time to withdraw if he did not want Thor's touch.

Thor's still-warm hand closed over Loki's, and Loki turned to look at him again and rolled his eyes.

"You may need your hands in battle in the morning, my prince. Would you not consider acting with more care?" He turned his hand so he was holding Thor's gently.

"You will not push me away, Loki," Thor said plainly.

Loki was silent.

Thor hesitated, but he had to ask.

"So you anticipate battle tomorrow? While I am sure it bodes no good for me or for Asgard, I confess I cannot predict Laufey's acts or discern his intent."

"Nor I," said Loki. He was quiet again, looking now inwards, as if debating something to himself. "I promised Queen Frigga that I would return you to her as you are. Know that I will do everything in my power to keep that promise."

Thor was too stunned to speak for a moment. He decided against commenting on this unexpected -and unexpectedly natural- complicity between Loki and Frigga.

"You can't keep that promise, Loki. You have already changed me irrevocably, so the son Frigga may welcome back even in the whole of his health is not the son she saw leave for Jotunheim at the beginning of the war. I only hope I have time to grow into and act on the changes you have made in me. And that you will be there to see that."

Loki shook his head. "You ask too much, Thunderer," he said quietly.

Thor silently agreed. So what if he could not get everything he wanted. He would demand it anyway. He would find a way.

Loki moved closer and Thor realised he was Aesir again. He lifted the fur to welcome Loki as he leaned into Thor, and the two of them sat there til dawn, wrapped in furs and murmuring to each other as they watched the dull sun rise over the distant mountain.

The sun was not long over the horizon when Laufey arrived on the roof with a small retinue. Thor wondered if the retinue was intended to escort him or to arrest him, or even if there was a difference at this point. His hand went to Mjolnir and he made ready. He knew Loki was still restricted from attacking him directly but he moved away from the sorcerer nevertheless.

Laufey crooked a finger at Loki, who stepped over to face his father and king.

"It is time, Loki," said Laufey.

Loki made to reply, but before he could, Laufey produced a shallow, sharp blade and plunged it into Loki's side below his ribs, withdrawing it just as quickly and dropping it to the ground. Thor was frozen in shock.

In the long second of realising he had been stabbed, Loki looked at his father in disbelief, fell helplessly down on one knee in a parody of obeisance, then collapsed completely in a convulsing sprawl of limbs. _Poison._

Thor _roared_ and made to attack Laufey with a devastating blow from Mjolnir. As he did, he became aware of a bloom of pain in his head, secondhand pain from Loki, he must have been in _agony_ for Thor to be able to feel it so clearly. The pain began to fade from Thor's awareness...and so did Loki. Halfway through his strike, Thor fumbled, his body reacting to the confusion in his mind, his soul, his heart.

Loki was fading, dying. Thor managed to keep on his feet without completing his intended blow, which would have devasasted Laufey had it landed, and landed it would have if not for Thor's feeling that his soul was being unstitched.

Turning from Laufey to Loki's prone body, he fell before his love and threw himself over Loki to protect him, surely Thor could protect him.

Loki stared back at him with empty eyes as Thor felt the light go out in his head. Loki's presence, which had been so familiar as to have become unremarkable, was gone.

Thor realised he himself was passing out in shock, and just before awareness almost blessedly fled and the rest of the light faded, Thor felt something click around his neck.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Spoilers in the comments section below! Avoid reading them until you finish the NEXT chapter if you want to avoid spoilers. My readers are as crafty as Laufey...


	25. Turnabout

Loki convulsed. Poison. The sheer amount of pain was unexpected, although it had taken a moment to hit after the actual shallow wound that Laufey had opened in Loki's side. Loki had instinctively attempted to shape-shift to neutralise the poison's effects if possible but of course Laufey had accounted for that and Loki found himself essentially paralysed.

He started to black out, probably a combination of pain and the effects of the poison. Far off, he heard Thor roar, and then felt Thor's weight on him, a protective weight. _Oaf_, thought Loki. _You should worry about yourself. Why didn't you listen to me?_

Loki knew he was dying and hoped Laufey had calculated correctly. Loki hoped he himself had calculated correctly and that Laufey did not intend for Loki to actually die. This was madness. _No more_, thought Loki. _No matter what the stakes, I will no longer be a play piece for Laufey's gambling. He has the Casket, he **had** the Casket all along, he did not have to do this to me. To Jotunheim.  
_

He tried to groan as he felt the bond start to tear away from him, and when it finally severed, he felt like his entire being had been snapped back like a rope that had ripped under tension. _Close to the edge now_, he thought. The bond would not have torn unless his soul had started to make the journey away. He could not feel anything in his body. He was more than unconscious; he was on the cusp of going somewhere else.

Too suddenly, he was back. His awareness of pain again came into sharp focus, his whole body now flooded with it. A bitter taste had burst in his mouth and he felt a hand stroking his throat, encouraging him to swallow. Chest heaving with what felt like a thousand motes of flaming dust, Loki tried to sit up and breathe.

Thor was lying at Loki's side, eyelids fluttering, Mjolnir abandoned by his feet, a copper or bronze collar around his neck. An old, crude version of bonding magic. Loki knew it alone could not hold a god for long. Thor needed to be secured properly. Loki turned to the figure who had forced him to swallow the antidote, and saw the calculating face of his father, King Laufey of Jotunheim.

"I warned him," Loki said hoarsely. It took a lot of effort. "He didn't listen."

Laufey's look grew more intense and held a hint of worry.

"I will do my duty, my King," said Loki, able to manage barely above a whisper. "Never fear that."

"On your feet then, my son."

Loki leaned on Laufey as he was pulled up to standing.

"Bring back the Casket to us, now."

Although it took a moment, Loki did so, drawing out the Casket and placing it safely on the ground. Two of Laufey's retinue took it at a gesture from Loki and stood where Laufey indicated.

Laufey handed Loki something. With numb fingers, Loki held it up so he could see it properly. It appeared to be a twin to the collar that Thor wore, except this one did not have a ring attached to it for a leash. Loki looked at his father in confusion. Laufey smiled grimly.

"I told you the Thunderer would pay. Part of his price is that you may, if you wish, turn his power on his army. Inflict what he has inflicted on your people and mine on those who have killed and driven to despair your people and mine. Wear the collar, Loki. The Odinson and his raw power are yours for the taking."

Loki looked down at Thor, who appeared to be somewhere undetermined between wakefulness and unconsciousness. He looked at the Casket and sensed its humming power. He looked at the Asgardian camp, still mostly asleep in the early morn and unaware of their King's fall. He looked at his father, expectant and triumphant.

With a foot, he nudged Thor, whose eyes appeared to focus on him for a second from behind fluttering eyelids, and whose hand made a vague attempt to grasp the collar at his neck. Loki made sure to stand in front of Thor's line of vision, such as it was. Loki carefully placed the second collar on his own neck.

An awareness of Thor blossomed in his mind again. This was definitely cruder, and more invasive. A spear with a stone for a head rather than a finely balanced dagger. He could work with it.

Thor came to with a gasp, stared for a moment as Loki looked down at him grinning. It was a horrible grin, Loki knew, no doubt accented by the rigors of being hauled back from near-death only moments before.

Seeing Thor awaken fully, Laufey snapped a command and the Casket of Winters was thrown open. Thor, still prone, attempted to call Mjolnir to him but they were overwhelmed by the ancient cold that spilled out of the Casket and over them both. A high pitched noise emanated from around Mjolnir as she struggled to leap to Thor's hand and away from the ancient unforgiving ice that encased her.

Laufey and Loki watched curiously for several long moments as Thor struggled to a stand. He physically reached for the hammer, only a few feet from him, but Loki snapped, "Thor, no! Over here! Now."

Thor looked at Loki in horror as he staggered over to Loki, Mjolnir abandoned and frozen in place. Loki could see that the power of the Casket had drained Thor considerably, but the real horror for him was the power of the collar. Thor again attempted to reach for it and tear it from his neck, but his hands cramped and he grunted in pain. 

Laufey reached out and clipped a surprisingly delicate chain to the ring on Thor's collar, and offered the leather handle to Loki.

Loki shook his head. "This is your prize, Father, not mine."

Laufey grinned, a mirror image of Loki's own, he knew.

Thor looked like death, pale and weak.

Loki knew it would not last long. He walked to the parapet of the roof and looked at the sleeping camp below. Thor tried to voice an objection but a tug of his leash by Laufey caused him to stumble and swallow his words.

Loki spoke instead. "If it pleases you, your Majesty, bring the King of Asgard here, by my side. Come here, Thor. Then be silent and do not act."

A mere twitch of the leash by Laufey was enough to bring Thor aside Loki and all three men stood by the parapet of palace which oversaw the Asgardian camp.

Thor looked at the camp and then at Loki, an angry look, silent. Loki took Thor's head in his hands almost gently, drew his face down to Loki's and kissed him very thoroughly. Shocked, Thor did not resist. Loki turned from him and focused his attention on the camp below.

Loki whispered, "So perish all enemies of Jotunheim."

He drew on his own chaotic seidr and funnelled Thor's elemental seidr through their bond. His magic danced green around him as he felt it coalesce and whirl and focus. Thor's magic crackled through him, drawing a gasp from Laufey and a pained grunt from Thor.

Loki could feel his seidr and Thor's, so different, so similar. One was green fire skylights tearing through the airy heights like an unbroken horse, nose to the wind and mane flying. All was possible and nothing thought of. The other was lightning energy splitting the sky before it, awesome in its power, the land cowering before it.

Standing stock still on the roof of the palace of Jotunheim, the son of Laufey rode the lights and the storm that converged from all over his realm, reached out with his eyes closed and took it in both his hands. He opened his eyes and he struck.

Thor could hear the screaming in the distant Asgardian camp. The sky had fallen on it; lightning struck and leapt away, leaving behind burnt and boiling bodies. Thunder rumbled, frightening the pack animals and even highly-trained, priceless warhorses into bolting from their restraints or injuring themselves in panic.

Ice rain fell and froze, burning the ground, splitting well-cured wood, ruining provisions, damaging structures. Winds howled and pushed and battered.

Distant mountains sprouted red rivers and showers of sparks as the hot currents under the ground shifted and the earth itself groaned and began to split around the palace and under the camp. Thor was quite sure for a moment that the whole camp was about to swallowed. He could feel the tremors underneath his own feet as they shuddered up through the palace and wondered if, in his lust for revenge, Loki might accidentally destroy them all. Loki's eyes were bright, near mad, in his sickly pale face.

_How is he doing this? His seidr is not connected to the earth. _Loki turned those madness-lit eyes on him, smiled that horrible grin, and as if having heard him, said "Chaos, Thunderer. Your magic is sky and sex and battle. Mine is chaos. Give me a well-built wall and I will pull a brick loose for the curiosity and the joy of seeing what it could become after it falls."

Loki flicked his hands in a complicated and angry gesture, and screams arose afresh in the camp.

"Their weapons?" Laufey enquired after a moment, perhaps seeing what Thor could not make out.

"Yes. Each weapon in the camp has moved independently and chaotically just once. Once is enough, I'm sure."

A sense of unreality washed over Thor. This could not be happening.

Despite Loki's admonishment not to act, Thor knew he could still call to Mjolnir. He did so, and felt her struggle to reach him. If she could come to him, Thor could free himself from this, and lay waste here, perhaps in time to save some in his camp. A slap to his face made him stumble, and he looked, outraged, at the perpetrator, to realise it was Loki. 

Loki looked angry, though beautiful and terrible in that anger, and Thor had to admit to himself that Loki's anger made him quail. Green eyes flashed fury and madness at him and a second slap blackened his vision for a moment.

"You again fail to listen, Thunderer. For your own good now, listen to me. Listen. Do not act. Do not try to act." Condescension dripped from each word. Thor used to so love that tone, when Loki, despite being enslaved and surrounded by enemies, would use that tone to explain to Thor exactly what kind of an oaf he was judging by whatever actions Thor had taken that Loki disapproved of.

His Loki no longer. Thor wished he could blame Prince Loptr for the events of the past hour but he saw with horrible clarity that this was Loki. He could see it in Loki's eyes, in his stance, in the seidr pulsing around his fingers, his beautiful hands, in the power he had wrenched from Thor. This was his love unleashed. In sorrow and anger and horror, Thor tried one more time to call Mjolnir to his hand.

She heard and she struggled to reach him, but could not. He heard Loki make a vexed noise and felt his legs going from under him.

He barely got his hands in place to break his fall and almost before he realised he was again face-down on the ground. A hand grasped his neck and pressed his face in the dirt, and there was a knee on the small of his back.

A voice full of poison was hissing in his ear. "Stop _now_. Be still. It will do you no good and I swear by the Norns if you disobey me again, I will bend you over the parapet, strip you and fuck you while we watch your army die. I will make you _bleed_, Odinson. Do not force my hand in this."

Thor could not speak, could not move. The weight on his back and neck disappeared but he could not move. He could only be still. Thor would not bow to threats or violence, but he could not disobey. For now. He felt the collar quiver around his neck as he tried once more to call Mjolnir, call the storm, to _move_.

He heard a muttered curse as Laufey's boot smashed into his head and bright lights flared behind his eyes.


	26. Fair Play

Thor awoke slowly. His senses were screaming, seemingly from very far away, that there was danger. The faint chill in the air helped him realise that he was lying slightly on his right side with both his arms chained over his head. 

It wasn't uncomfortable, apart from some mild strain on his shoulder from his position. _Stop snoring you oaf_, Loki's voice grumbled in his head. Care had been taken when restraining him. There was a slight weight around his neck still. His head and ribs hurt. He didn't remember injuring his ribs.

He thought he could detect faint flickering light through his eyelids. The crackle and spark of a fire confirmed what he already knew; that he was back in Loki's room. In Loki's bed. Loki would regret that kindness. If kindness it was.

He called to Mjolnir, hoping that his face betrayed not his efforts. He could sense her somewhere, but muted, still unable to come to his hand. Blast it all. Alone, then.

Opening his eyes a crack, he could see Loki sitting cross-legged by the fire with a light blanket around his shoulders and a full cup at his side, staring at the fire. He looked faraway, but not lost, like he often did when he had a faraway look on his face. _Well, why would he look lost in his own home, his own apartments_.

Loki murmured, as if to himself, "I know you're awake," and turned to him, smiling slightly, softly. He looked much like Thor's Loki. Not at all like the vicious warrior who had just laid waste to the Asgardian camp and all that had occupied her.

Loki's smile faded as he rose, rearranging the blanket on his shoulders. He still wore the collar whose twin had Thor bound. Loki approached the bed carefully and poured a glass of water, offering it. Thor turned his head slightly to refuse the glass. Loki laughed softly, took a sip himself and sat on the bed.

Loki's eyes flicked over Thor's seidr-enhanced restraints. He smiled again briefly, took a deep breath and asked, "Are you well?"

Thor growled low in his throat, and met Loki's eyes. He tugged on the chains experimentally, steadily, to the limit of the slack on them. He flexed his arms and legs, feeling the tautness of his chains, still looking unblinking at Loki, took a deep breath, and _pulled_. The chains groaned. The bedposts that anchored them protested too.

Loki stood up from the bed, calmly, setting the glass down and backing up from the bed no more than three steps. Nothing budged, as Thor expected, but he took another slow, deep breath and continued to flex and strain, never breaking eye contact with Loki. Loki crossed his arms and waited. Thor eventually relaxed his muscles and breathed calmly and deeply, the shift in his efforts barely noticeable, a calm acceptance of his failure - for now.

He continued to meet Loki's eyes, saying nothing. Loki looked slightly relieved. So Loki wasn't sure of the spellwork that reinforced Thor's bindings. How much did he trust the collar? As if he had read Thor's mind, Loki said, "I know that there is no way you can break your chains as I ensorcelled them myself, but I am so used to your force of will over-riding cold, hard reality when it displeases you that I admit I was slightly worried."

Thor gave him a disgusted look. Loki sat back down on the bed, staring at the blankets, seemingly at a loss as to what to do next.

Finally he raised his head and said "It's close to noon. Negotiations have started well, I hear. I don't think you will be entirely displeased by the outcome. Laufey-king has agreed to almost all of the Asgardian demands, and Asgard has acceded to ours."

Thor grunted. "I have some demands of my own."

"Ah, it speaks." Loki offered the half-full glass of water. Thor drank, and again when Loki refilled the glass.

Words came poisonously from Thor's throat, from his raging breast, not bothering with stopping by the filters of his heart or his brain before being spat out.

"Why do you still appear to me as an Aesir, _Jotunn_? You are in your own home. Wear your true form."

Loki looked at him, expressionlessly. "I no longer have a true form, _Asgardian_. This is not my home. And you no longer command me."

Thor laughed. "As if anyone has ever truly commanded you. You are _feral_."

Loki continued to look at him, as expressionless as before, and remained silent.

"Why am I in chains, sorcerer? Am I not now your slave to command and unable to disobey?"

Loki sat back on the bed, looking irritated now. "You are a very physical thinker, sometimes, Thor. Rather than you fighting a virtually intangible bond to no-one's advantage, especially your own, I thought it would be easier for you to understand the situation if you were properly restrained -chained!- for a while. And look, here we are talking, instead of me constantly having to set you down. I did promise the Queen I would return you to her as you are."

Thor glared at him and tugged at the chain again, reflexively. Loki shook his head.

Thor growled. "So you gave your word to my mother. You gave me no oath, I suppose. Made me no promises. But... you gave me your trust, little prince." His tone turned scornful. "For one night on the mountain and for the day afterwards."

Loki's eyes widened and Thor saw with some satisfaction that his arrow had flown true.

To his surprise, he saw the dull gleam of sadness in Loki's eyes as Loki took a breath and replied, "I have many regrets, my prince. But that is not one of them. Taunt me if you wish but I am at least honest enough to say to you - I would do it again."

Thor calmed himself, and tried to make sense of the morning's events. He could not reconcile the trust he thought he had built with Loki, and the horrors that Loki had done, even if he had warned Thor of his intentions.

"Loki. You did a terrible thing to those under my command. Those you had lived beside, ate beside, rode beside..."

Loki's eyes flashed a dangerous green.

"Those I was forced to fight beside. Those who tortured my brother and future king to the brink of death. Don't forget that, my prince. I watched as many of them slaughtered my father's subjects. I _helped_. They received better from me than they deserved, as did you, don't doubt that."

Thor was silent for a moment. He organised his swirling thoughts, loss and anger and love and impotence and guilt and frustration and want and humiliation and sorrow all mixed up together.

Finally, he settled on, "I did not think you capable of such cruelty."

Loki snorted. "Surprised that I might match yours, Odinson? I do what I think is necessary."

"Loki, you cannot have thought it necessary to do what you did. I would have handed you the camp if you had asked, save you spare my warriors' lives."

Loki was again silent.

Thor continued. "I presented myself for punishment, you destroyed my followers. I would have submitted to anything you asked of me."

Loki rolled his eyes. "Do not pretend you and your army are not one and the same. You speak and your army strikes, it is an extension of yourself. Besides, I wanted to hurt you. I knew it would be easier for you to sacrifice yourself than watch them suffer, and knowing this, why would I allow you the easier punishment? Submit to _this_, Thunderer. _Their pain is your punishment_."

Thor stared at the ceiling. He had not expected this of Loki in any circumstance. Mass murder of the defenseless, and defenseless they had been against the power of two gods. Loki had threatened him with violation, and Thor thought he knew who had kicked him in the ribs while he was unconscious on the roof. Not Laufey.

Had Thor truly been taken in by the sorcerer? Did he not understand Loki's nature at all? Thor felt a sense of deep loss for the time he had spent with Loki among the tents, where he had had Loki to himself, where Thor had belonged to everyone but Loki had belonged only to him.

He refused to indulge himself in self-pity, and turned his mind back to his soldiers.

"You treated good soldiers as _things_. You used brave women and men as a tool against me, sorcerer. A nasty trick."

"Spare me your sentiment. I do not enjoy the thought of making your soldiers suffer and die in fear and pain; that is not where my satisfaction lies. My actions this morning were mainly designed to hurt _you_, Thor, as viscerally as I could with what tools I had at my disposal, including those in the camp who love you_._ I meant to hurt you by striking at them. By striking at them with _your_ power. Some may have thought that you had turned on them, seeing the storm strike them along with chaos."

Thor's heart dropped in his chest.

Loki grinned, a malicious grin that made his green eyes shine.

"How does that make you feel, Thunderer? The knowledge that your soldiers may have cursed you as a traitor as they died? Maybe they thought you sold yourself to a Jotunn whore. That's how they thought of me, you know. Perhaps they guessed that I had made you my whore at the end, and were not surprised to see the storm descend upon them from the palace of Jotunheim where you had led them."

Thor took a deep breath. He could not believe how painful mere words could be. He would have gladly submitted to any torture than for the women and men who followed him to suffer for his sake. Loki knew this, and had used it. And for them to think themselves betrayed by their general, their king...

Loki sighed and made as if to brush Thor's face with his fingers. "Negotiations for your release, or not, are only begun. Laufey has not yet decided if there is a price high enough for your freedom, and Asgard does not dare attack to free you or recover your body while there is still a chance to resolve this peacefully, and with you intact. Laufey had given them no proof that you live. Your mother will be worried. Let us end this charade quickly, then, shall we?"

In addition to the sickening horror Thor was feeling, a cold dread crept over him. "Who...is negotiating on behalf of Asgard?"

Loki did not look at him. "The Allfather. He has awakened."

The cold dreads were replaced by steaming hot humiliation. Thor closed his eyes completely and groaned, unable to cope with the pain of it all.

Odin had come to rescue his impulsive son from the trap he had walked himself into. Awakened, no doubt well before time, from his slumber, to do what Thor could not. End a war that Asgard has practically won until their foolish king had walked into danger with his eyes open, sure he could wring victory from a position of weakness. The whole of Asgard held to ransom for Thor's stupidity. Thor's father, the Allfather, shamed by his son's failure.

"This is part of my punishment, then? Refusing me the right to represent Asgard as her king at the peace negotiations, shaming me in front of my father and my realm?"

"As much as you deserve, Thunderer, and no more. However, I will not claim full credit for your humiliation. Laufey is taking great pleasure in the pain of your father at his son's failure. I suspect that if Laufey decides to part with you, he will personally return you to your father's custody at the end of a pretty leash."

Thor opened his eyes and tried to breath calmly. He frowned and realised he had been so consumed with his own situation -and with Loki's infuriating calm in the face of all he had done- that he had not thought once about his companions.

"Sif, the Warriors Three? Did they..." He stopped speaking as soon as he realised that he did not want to offer Loki any more ways to control him or cause him pain.

"They are fine. A little cold-burned and bruised perhaps. Nothing serious."

Thor snorted, but his heart lifted a little. "Am I to take your word for it, trickster?"

"Yes," replied Loki. "Or do not, it matters little to me. Now, shall I remove the chains? Or will you continue to bash your head needlessly? Accept this situation, Thor. If you are lucky, and you are always lucky, you will not have to endure being under my thumb for long."

At this, he did run his fingers over Thor's face, as if trying to memorise it.

Thor shot him a filthy look, and Loki laughed with obvious glee, running a thumb along Thor's lower lip. Taking Thor's sullen silence for acquiescence, Loki spelled the runes artfully in the air between them and the chains erased themselves in a peeling back of green seidr.

"Theatrical," muttered Thor.

"You have only the faintest idea," murmured Loki, with a secretive smile.

Thor sat up and immediately reached for the collar around his neck and gasped as his arms cramped. Loki looked annoyed and made to retaliate but Thor forestalled him with, "I had to try. I am done. For now."

Loki gave an exasperated sigh and climbed on the bed properly, straddling Thor's thighs.

Thor commented, "Brave, sorcerer," and placed his hands on Loki's hips.

Loki raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, Thor, always. Every moment I was in your presence in the camps I had far less protection from you than I do here, and you were much more unpredictable than you are now. Each night I lay myself down beside a man who I feared might decide to kill me in the morning." 

Loki ran his hands up and down Thor's arms as if unconsciously wanting to help relieve the stiffness there.

"Of course," he said sourly, rolling his eyes, "You're too stubborn to be properly frightened by your situation now, so you will never appreciate the depths of my courage, my prince."

Thor laughed at Loki's description of his obtuseness, and Loki grinned at him. Suddenly, it did not feel as if much had changed. Loki making an acid observation about a situation that Thor had not bothered thinking about, and Thor realising what an oaf he was in his ignorance. It had been a familiar game between them, before.

"Why am I not in the dungeons?"

Loki ran a finger down Thor's chest. Thor was surprised at the possessive quality of his touch.

"Because I wanted you here. You might not survive the dungeons long, they are colder than are comfortable even for the mighty god of thunder, and the guards would not be friendly to a king of Asgard. Laufey-king gave me permission to keep you here."

"Like a pet."

"Yes, my prince, like a pet, neutered but still not trained. I had to work hard to convince him that I could be trusted with your leash. Did you like the rape threat? I thought it was wonderfully vicious, such an ugly thing. I might have had to go through with it too had Laufey not ended the struggle first. You should be grateful for his kick to your head."

Thor was stunned, even in the face of all he had seen Loki do already that day. "You really would have raped me." _I raped him. He's entitled to his revenge. _

Loki looked him dead in the eye. Thor had known at the time that it was not an empty threat, but he still had a hard time believing Loki, his Loki, would do such a thing to him, in hot blood or cold.

"You think I would do so out of vengeance, after all that has passed between us? Norns, Thor. I would do anything that was necessary to keep you safe, my prince. You were lucky that Laufey feared you would succeed in breaking free and decided to end the struggle quickly. Do you understand? It could have been much worse than rape."

Thor snorted. "Worse than rape and slavery? Worse than being leashed and handed to your father, who hates me dearly?"

Loki smiled grimly. "It could always be worse with Laufey involved. Mark me on that. And leashing you in my father's tender care is the only reason he trusted me with you in my rooms."

"And you supposedly play this game with Laufey because you promised my mother you would keep me safe."

Loki looked away. "Yes. For her sake."

Thor did not believe him. "Loki. Come back with me. I will take my punishment, my humiliation, as you wish it, as I deserve. You know me for who I am and I would wish for a warrior's death on the battlefield as a finer fate or even breaking my neck falling off my horse more than anything you will offer me, but I will gladly kneel for beatings or whippings or any penalty imposed by you, by my father or yours in payment for my crimes if you wish me to. Say you forgive me and that you will come back with me."

Loki said nothing for a moment. Still seated on Thor's thighs, he placed his hands over Thor's, still on Loki's hips. "Too much has passed between us."

"Too much has. Because of war. The war is as good over, Loki. Let us forgive each other as our realms must, let us accept and move on from the awful things we have done to each other. You say this is not your home; I know it. Your home is with me, where we are together. Tell me that I am wrong, if you can."

'Thor. If I told you that Sif and the Warriors Three did not survive the morning, what then?"

Thor took a deep breath. "If that is true, then they died honourably in the service of their king and their realm. As your brother did. I accept this. If it is true."

Loki threw up his hands in exasperation. "Again, you remake reality to suit your needs. You win, Thor. If you insist on believing that the impossible can happen simply because you will it, I cannot fight you anymore. Demand the future as you desire it."

Thor was delighted. "You will come with me then?"

"Thor..."

"Just consider it, Loki. We no doubt have some difficult times ahead today to navigate first."

He closed the distance between the two of them and enveloped Loki in a thorough kiss.


	27. The Gilded Prince

Loki did not resist Thor's embrace -what was the point, the man was as unmovable by argument as a mountain when he decided to be- and let himself be kissed and then rolled on to his back. Thor settled himself on top of Loki and kissed him again, so Loki started to relax, finally.

_It must be nice to live in Thor's world_, thought Loki,_ where almost your every whim becomes reality_. He knew he was being unfair but he was feeling very sour. Thor had accepted..._everything_...with such good grace. Loki had hoped for far more anger and bitterness and hate from Thor than been offered. Instead Thor had cycled through his grief and anger and loss with steady speed and had arrived at forgiveness with maddening ease.

Loki knew this did not mean that Thor was not suffering, and Loki did take some satisfaction in the pain he saw on Thor's face, the haunted look in his eyes when he thought his warriors had died thinking him a traitor to them. Thor would have done anything to spare his people that kind of pain. And truly, they did not deserve it. Cruel they may have been to Loki's people, and they surely deserved to die at his hand, but to think themselves played false by the young king that they had followed with joy in their hearts, that was cruel indeed.

Just as well it was not true.

Loki had taken a grim joy in flinging the storm and chaos at the Asgardian camp. He revelled in the fear and confusion that it must have caused, and some no doubt wondered how it was that their king's magical domain had been turned on them. There had probably been some broken bones and sore heads as a result of the winds causing tents and other structures to collapse, some deafness from the sound of thunder following nearby lightning strikes, some burns from the bitter cold that had crept silently but speedily along the ground of their camp, some cuts and stabs from weapons that had turned on their masters for one chaotic moment. That, though, was the least the Asgardian soldiers owed in penance for their deeds. And it was a small price to pay for the safety of their king.

They had enough love for their king that they would consider such injuries to be a small price to pay for his safety, he knew. There were many among them who had enough honour to consider such injuries a small price to safeguard the lives of even the lowest among them, Lady Sif and the Warriors Three at the forefront of those.

Both Laufey and Thor seemed to accept the picture he had painted with sound and fury. He wondered about Thor, who often saw more than he revealed. If he did in this, surely he was smart enough to keep quiet about it.

No, Loki thought Thor believed what Loki wanted of him to believe, for the moment. Thor's pain had been too real, too visceral for him to have suspected the lie. Or he may suspect, but would not allow himself to hope.

Loki realised that perhaps Thor just trusted him in this, one way or the other.

Thor stroked his face gently, and frowned. "Take off your collar."

Loki was not sure he had heard properly. He opened his eyes and looked up at Thor in bafflement.

Thor repeated, "Take it off. I cannot touch either collar, and I want all of you now. Now, Loki."

Loki laughed disbelievingly. "You no longer command me, do you understand this? The opposite is true, in fact. Why would I remove the collar?"

"Because, Loki Laufeyson, now first prince of his realm and sorcerer of the army of Jotunheim, I walked into this palace with you virtually naked and unafraid, and submitted myself for punishment. Which you have delivered and I have accepted. I demand you trust me as much as I trust you."

Loki attempted to scoff and deflect. "_Demand_? And you were hardly naked, my prince, with Mjolnir on your belt..."

Thor silenced him with a large finger on his lips, and continued to speak in a low voice, looming over Loki. 

"And because, my sorcerer, _my master_, because despite the collar, and despite your sovereignty here, and despite having the household and guard of the palace of Jotunheim at your command..." Loki felt Thor's half-aroused hardness trapped in his leather trousers flush against his own clothed thigh.

Thor took Loki's wrists in his large hands, pinning them by his head so he was physically utterly dominated.

"Despite having me at your mercy, collared and bound, _you know exactly whom between us commands in bed_."

Loki astonishment melted into...he felt himself just melt. Thor's kiss resonated through his entire body, scalp to toes and fingertips. He would have laughed if he had not been as deep in his bliss as he was. Thor had again turned the tables on him and Loki was helpless. Who had seduced whom? He could never be sure, despite the work he knew he had put into manipulating Thor, when Loki had almost from the first been as pliable in Thor's hands, bond or no bond. Loki sighed, and submitted.

Thor spoke in a low voice. "Now, Loki."

Thor's erection was flush against Loki's pelvis, and much of Thor's strong hands kept him pinned to the bed. How was Loki supposed to remove the collar when his hands were immobile? He squirmed beneath Thor and glared, helpless, able to neither obey nor free himself.

Thor laughed and kissed him again.

Loki's hands were loosed, and Thor shifted so his crotch pressed more demandingly against Loki's pelvis and hip. Loki groaned at the sensation but still managed to speak warningly.

"Do not do anything _stupid_, Thunderer. Certainly not anything as stupid as I am about to do."

He reached for Thor's collar first, even though Thor had not asked for that to be removed. Thor's smug smile spoke volumes.

As he removed his own collar, he waited for Thor to do that something stupid, such as crush the collars, crush _Loki_, go haring off to find Mjolnir, or Laufey, or Odin.

Instead, Loki found himself being kissed again, and gently held.

That didn't last long, as Thor suddenly half-stripped him. He lifted himself off Loki and before Loki could protest the abandonment he found himself flipped over on the bed, tunic pulled up to expose his back, trousers pulled down to expose his ass, and again both his wrists pinned above his head by one of Thor's hands. Thor straddled his hips, forcing him belly and face down on the bed. Loki did not even have time to struggle! When did Thor get so fast?

Thor pressed his still-clothed cock against Loki's naked ass and nipped his neck where the collar had been. "Should I mark you here, sorcerer? For your father's court to see? If I bruise you just there, it will be quite clear that the King of Asgard took you from behind and you did nothing to stop it."

Loki found himself going from sleepily and happily half-aroused to suddenly on the edge of something more urgent.

He angrily tried to kick back at Thor _-is that why he wanted the collar removed?!- _but realised he was just flailing helplessly face-down on the bed. He managed to gasp out, "Finally there is no barrier between us, Thunderer, no coercion, no control, and _this_ is what you choose to do at this moment?"

Loki heard Thor unbuckle his own belt, the rasp of leather on leather, and the clink of the buckle. 

Thor's voice was low and victorious.

"You yielded control to me the moment you removed the collars, and you know it. Have you shown your palace courtiers this mark yet, Loki?"

The belt dropped beside Loki, and he shivered on feeling Thor's free hand stroking down Loki's back, following the mark of the lightning scar.

"I should force you to show it to the lowliest member of your household here so it is clear who owns whom. I made this mark on your back before I bound you, forced it on you in a straight contest of strength and will. No matter what the outcome of today, you will always know that I beat you first, and thoroughly."

Loki snorted. "It took you months to capture me and it was a knife-edge between us at the end, Thunderer. Don't count a lucky blow thrown out in more hope than strategy as a meaningful victory."

Thor's voice had taken on a dreamy quality. "Nevertheless, sorcerer..."

Thor stopped tracing the scar and Loki heard the clink of a belt buckle again. He looked over his shoulder to see what Thor was doing, and yes, he was looping his belt around and tightening the buckle with his teeth in a leisurely fashion to create a handle for himself.

"What do you think you're doing?" Loki did _not_ shriek, and he tensed in outraged anticipation.

Thor grinned as he gripped the belt by the buckle and swished it through the air to get a feel for it. He climbed off Loki again and still leaned on Loki's wrists with one hand. Loki could now pull himself up on his knees but that would just be presenting Thor with an easier target.

"I'm in a demanding mood, sorcerer. I demand satisfaction for your crimes against me this morning."

Loki was suddenly worried. Was this a game or no? There was a gleam in Thor's eye that he could not quite interpret.

Before he could concern himself any more, Thor was speaking again.

"This," he said "is for slapping me across the face." He brought down the belt across Loki's ass and Loki grunted at the hot edged sting, and then groaned at the blossoming of the true heat and pain that followed, and squirmed.

"This," Thor continued "is for slapping me across the face a second time."

Loki managed to hold the grunt this time, but could not help groaning at the following pain.

"And this," Loki felt Thor prepare to put his full arm into the strike "is for kicking me in the ribs while I was unconscious." Thor surely held back despite telegraphing his full strength as the third stroke did not feel much worse than the second, but Loki had tensed with the anticipation of it and combined with already sensitized skin, and when the after-pain bloomed it felt like his ass was aflame. He hissed out the breath he hadn't realised he had been holding.

"A moment, a moment," he panted. He hadn't intended to beg for mercy just yet. Thor let go of his wrists and Loki placed his palms onto his buttocks to try to soothe the pain. He felt Thor do the same so he placed his hands instead onto the cool blankets and tried to control his breathing. Thor was massaging Loki's pains away to manageable levels, murmuring sweet nothings, leaving Loki annoyed that all it took was a few strokes of Thor's belt to reduce him to a breathless, pain-shy supplicant.

"How many more?" Loki managed to ask in a steady voice, hardly out of breath at all, really.

"I was finished," grinned Thor. Despite his apparent tender loving attentions to Loki's pain, he was circling his hips and rubbing his cock against Loki's thigh. "How many more would you like?"

Loki shook his head and hid his face in the blankets. Thor reached around and pump Loki's cock a few times, too slowly, too lightly. Loki groaned in complaint and Thor worked his cock in earnest now, leaning down to cover Loki, kissing the nape of his neck and grinning into his hair.

"I'm going to make you beg for it, Loki. I'm going to make you beg for me to fuck you so hard that you will still feel it when Prince Loptr addresses the court today." Loki was panting now, the weight of Thor on him, Thor's hand pleasuring him roughly, Thor's cock lying large and hot and near-full across Loki's slightly burning ass, his voice in Loki's ear, his breath in Loki's hair, his love and desire surrounding Loki...it almost felt too much to take.

Just as Loki felt himself begin on the home stretch, Thor removed his hot, strong, talented hand from Loki's cock and Loki whined in disappointment and frustration. Thor kissed his cheek and the side of his neck and moved back down his body to straddle Loki across the hips again. He began to trace the lightning bolt mark along Loki's back as he had done several times before, but with his heavy cock this time. Loki could feel the heat of Thor's groin and the power of his thighs as the head of Thor's cock travelled hot and firm up his torso.

Loki sighed as he felt Thor rub his precum along the mark.

"If only I could make you lick this off yourself," muttered Thor. "Maybe I should come across your back again and refuse to allow you to clean it. How would you like that, presenting me as your pet to the court while my seed lies drying on as well as inside you?" Thor slapped Loki's ass for emphasis. "I will not allow you to forget your place in our bed, no matter which of us appears to lead in public."

Loki shuddered and hid his face in the blankets again, unwilling to allow Thor to see the effect his words had on him. Thor laughed. "You are a strange one, my love. Who knows what will happen today anyway? If you're going to fuck me in front of your father's court, then I will make sure you will do it while you still can feel what it was like to have _my_ cock in _your_ ass. Now, restrain your wrists, I need two hands if I am to take care of us both." Thor moved off Loki and positioned him so his hands could reach the head of the bed. Loki turned to look at him with an eyebrow raised. "Do it. Now, Loki. Both wrists, tied to the bedposts.

"This had better be worth it, Thunderer." Loki conjured cuffs and chains that wrapped around the bedposts with little give. Thor laughed and kissed between Loki's shoulders, murmuring "I accept your challenge, sorcerer" into Loki's ear, making him shiver again. Loki thought to himself with a smile _I knew you would. _

Some time later, looking down at Loki, now facing him and whose legs were now wrapped around Thor's waist, green eyes closed in pleasure and hands neatly pinned above his head so Thor could dominate and ravish him completely, Thor found himself almost at the limit of his endurance and self-control. Truth be told, he was approaching the climax of their bedplay with more enthusiasm than skill. His lack of finesse did not draw a complaint from his lover though, as Thor pounded his pleasures into Loki, having spent considerable time preparing and teasing and stretching and stroking him.

No doubt Loki ached from the fucking he was getting, and he was beginning to beg in earnest now, for Thor's hand, Thor's mouth, for permission to free his own hands and take care of himself. Thor ignored all and focused on kissing and teasing his mouth and neck, offering a merciful brush or pull of his hand on Loki's cock to keep him engaged in the fight, fucking him hard.

Thor was not sure if Loki was drawing his pleasure from the feeling of being pounded by Thor's cock, the sparse pumps of his own cock by the grace of Thor, or whether it was the experience of being the focus of Thor's attentions and demands, most probably all of these. Whichever the case, it was time to give Loki what he needed.

Thor realised he had a long road to walk to fully understand the needs and desires of his sorcerer, but he could not concern himself too much about it while Loki was beneath him.

Thor _adored _his sorcerer like this, choosing submissiveness and compliance despite possessing will and power to match any warrior or king that Thor had met, and still ready to spit in Thor's eye -and perhaps split his head- if Thor stepped out of line. Loki was now shameless in his desire to be physically dominated, yet still guarded himself emotionally. Thor accepted that; if pouring as much love for Loki as Thor had into him did not open Loki as Thor would wish, so be it. He would take whatever Loki offered him, and would be grateful.

He began to work Loki's cock now as he knew Loki liked it, and Loki began to thank him, mumbling affirmations and encouragement and compliments. Thor began to rise to his own peak; wouldn't it be sweet to come together. Thor knew that the only place that he had the advantage of Loki was in bed, the only place Loki could not read Thor's intentions and predict Thor's actions was here, especially now, in the heat of passion, so Thor decided to play dirty.

"Come home with me, Loki" he gasped out. "When this is over, come with me, say you will." Loki did not hesitate, caught up in the moment. "I will, yes, I will, I'll come with you, yes."

They crested at the same time, and as they did, Loki began to cry.

Afterwards, Thor held him close.


	28. Trust

Had that been a mistake? Thor knew that Loki's cold fury would not abate any time soon, and he hoped this would not lead to events going even more ill for him than was already inevitable. As soon as Loki had recovered himself, he had pushed Thor away, clipped the collar back on himself almost immediately and moved to replace Thor's too.

Thor caught his hand. "Could you not simply conjure an illusion of the collar? I know you are as uneasy as I about this." 

Loki snapped the collar on his neck and only then replied. "I don't trust you to behave as one collared when you are in front of Laufey, especially with Odin present. I know you; you will not hold your tongue or your temper and it is too big a risk while you are still in Jotunheim. I don't trust you, Thor."

Thor winced at these last words, knowing that they were for more than his tongue or his temper.

Loki went to the reception room and retrieved some food that had been kept hot under a cover and a neatly folded pile of what looked like clothing. He put some of the clothing aside, and took a deep breath.

"At least Laufey does not appear to wish to drag you in front of his court and the Allfather in slave garb. I am going to bathe alone, stay here and eat if you wish. Speak to no-one who might visit these apartments. Perhaps not even me." 

With that, Loki swept into the bathing room, leaving Thor alone with no choice except to eat, and to contemplate trust in silence.

Loki was in a fury, and his baths, the one part of the entire palace which felt like home to him, a sanctuary, did not soothe for once. How could Thor extract a promise from him like that? _I had to know what your heart wanted. And now I do and so do you, _Thor had argued. Did he really think that Loki could follow his cock as easily and without fear of consequences as Thor? Loki had let down his guard with Thor, his every instinct telling him this was right and good, but his instincts had failed him.

Thor had taken advantage of his trust. Turned the tables on Loki as surely as Loki had on him. Loki found himself as near laughing as crying. He was so sure that he understood Thor, could predict the Thunderer's every oafish move. Thor had more than once, even if rarely, proved himself far more subtle and dexterous than one would ever guess, and in matters that were crucial.

Loki wanted to go with Thor, it was true. His heart demanded it as much as his cock if he was honest. But it was impossible. Even if he could forgive Thor for past crimes, Loki would not further betray Laufey for him (or for Frigga, he reminded himself. Misleading Laufey for Frigga's sake - was that less of a betrayal, or more?). He had a duty to his king, and to help repair his land once the Casket was publicly acknowledged as belonging in Jotunheim again. Loki would not betray his father to their people, he knew, and would allow the Jotunn to believe that the Casket was only newly returned.

Loki would convince Laufey to release Helbindi from where-ever he had been tucked away and remind Helblindi of his duties in the aftermath of the loss of Byliestr. He would act as an ambassador of Jotunheim if Laufey decided it was wise, and help his realm take its place again as one of the Nine.

No time for frolicking with the once-king of Asgard, the enemy, in this picture. No matter what he had admitted aloud of his desires.

Thor would not hold Loki to a promise extracted in a moment of weakness. He could not.

Perhaps they would see each other on political occasions.

Perhaps Loki would visit Thor on Asgard once in a while, travelling by his secret pathways so as not to alert the dreaded gatekeeper of Asgard to Loki's presence. He would visit if Thor was not so angered by Loki's decision that he would refuse Loki an audience. He would visit until Thor grew too heartsick to see him or until Thor lost interest in him. No doubt the Golden Prince would have a rake of suitors pursuing him even if he was returned home in disgrace.

By the time he had finished bathing, Loki still was not calm enough to dislike the thought of the humiliation that awaited Thor this afternoon. Thor was to be paraded before what remained of the Court of Jotunheim as a slave, no doubt with the Allfather as witness. It was the price Thor would have to pay for his safe transfer to the Allfather's custody, which was likely humiliating in itself. Loki found himself looking forward to it.

Loki still suspected Laufey of plotting for something beyond Loki's sight; he had been far too quick to agree to much of Asgard's demands. He knew that the Allfather had dealings with Laufey from times long past and no doubt Odin was wise to Laufey in a way that Loki might not be. It was not Loki's responsibility. No matter what Loki felt for Thor, any concerns for Asgard were limited to the promise Loki made Frigga, to return Thor whole and himself. If the prince returned to find his kingdom in ruins, it was not Loki's look-out.

As if summoned by Loki's dark thoughts, Laufey was waiting in the bedroom. His back was to Loki and he was addressing Thor, who stood naked and silent by the bed, looking mutinous. "It is worth the ruination of my kingdom to have you on your knees before me, Odinson."

'You heard him, Thunderer. Down," snapped Loki. Laufey watched Thor drop to his knees in anger and humiliation, then he turned and smiled at Loki, a wolf's smile. "Putting your slave through his paces, I see." Loki knew he was not controlling his expression well, and did not care. "Something like that, Father. Thor, go bathe." Thor got to his feet and walked stiffly to the bathing room.

Laufey took Loki's hands in his, but before he could speak words which Loki knew were meant to be comforting, Loki asked straight out "What is it you intend, Laufey-king? There are too many lies between us and I will have no more. Tell me plainly what you wish from this game as it comes to its end. You have yet to explain the rules to me, and I find myself tiring of it." He had never been so blunt, so disrespectful to his father before.

Laufey raised a eyebrow. "So the company of the Odinson has driven you to this? He truly has his father's presence and force of personality. I recognise much of Odin in his son, I fear. I could ask the same questions of you, boy. What is it you wish from this game?"

Loki hesitated. He withdrew his hands from his father's, and began to dress. "I wish for the war to be done. For Asgard to give us peace. For Jotunheim to rebuild with the aid of our ancestral birthright, the Casket, in the hands of her people again, without Asgard or any other of the realms questioning our right to it." There. He had neatly given Laufey an excuse for hiding his possession of the Casket for all this time, a pretense that Laufey was merely protecting it from prying eyes and grasping fingers. Why was he continuing to protect his father from his anger?

"Neatly done, Loki," Laufey acknowledged.

Loki turned from him and checked his reflection in the mirror. Formal reds and blues for the appearance of a soldier of noble origin at court, insignia and all. He felt overdressed.

"But you did not answer my question, Loki, not really. What do you want? Or perhaps I should ask more specifically, what do you want for yourself? Not this, I am sure."

Loki turned back, uncertain as to what Laufey meant by 'this', and saw that his father was holding a band of gold, appropriate for a prince of the realm. Loki recognised it as his, once, from another life it seemed now.

He shook his head. "No, Father. I'm not sure I ever wanted that. I had little reason to wear it before, and less now to tell the truth." Laufey made to place it on his brow. "You will wear it today as a favour to me." Loki laughed, looking up at Laufey. "You ask so little of me today, Laufey-king?"

Laufey settled the band on Loki's brow. "That, boy, depends on what you want. I may have to ask more than you are willing to give. I need to know your heart, now."

Thor returned to the room, towelling off, still gloweringly silent, obviously trying to deduce the nature of the conversation between father and son. His eyes opened slightly as the sight of Loki in full royal military dress, his personal sign of twin knives on the breast of his overcoat. _Thor was not aware I had a sign. He suggested a green serpent for me. Perhaps I will add it._

Laufey observed the look exchanged between them and muttered, "I may not have need of an answer." He brushed Loki's cheek with his hand.

Laufey raised his voice for Thor to hear. "Odinson. Our negotiations are nearly done. Your freedom is almost assured, if you have patience." Thor clearly tried not to snarl.

"Thor. Get dressed in the reception room." Loki could not help half-smiling in amusement at the outraged look on Thor's face as he moved to obey.

Once they were alone again, Laufey waved at Loki to sit, and they faced each other seated. "Keep your own counsel, Loki. If you wish to keep your desires hidden from me, that is your right. Do you keep them hidden from yourself?"

Loki kept his face blank and looked at the table between them, knowing this was telling his father more of what he wanted to know.

Laufey waited for a moment before continuing. "This is what I require of you today. You are not the crown prince, though the throne has always been yours for the asking. Equally, I always knew you were meant for greater things than merely master of this realm."

Loki looked at his father at this.

Laufey now sounded as if he had rehearsed somewhat. "From the moment you were born, you had an aura of a type of power not typical of our people. You were exposed in the temple with my full confidence that you would survive, a rare thing for a babe as weak as you were. I kept you apart from the throne in order for you to cultivate your power, your _self_, not to have to be corralled and to force the raging river of your self down the tame channels of the canal that is kingship. Do you understand?"

Loki understood. He did not care anymore. He wasn't sure he ever had. And he was losing patience. His anger was rising. Loki was beginning to accept that he had failed. That he had in his heart pledged to serve his people, those who believed in him. Not as a member of the royal family proper for that had been out of the question, but as their sorcerer, their warrior-mage, as a symbol, as a... as one of them.

He had not spotted Laufey's lies -him, Loki, prince of lies and patron of mischief!- which had allowed Laufey to abdicate his responsibilities to his kingdom in favour of petty revenge. He had failed to protect his people from their enemy at their heart, their own selfish king. Loki had fought a fool's war, as much a tool of Laufey as he had been of Thor. He was deathly sick of being the puppet of those he loved, and who loved him.

"Loki, my son. Today I ask you to serve the Crown in a guise you have taken for us before. As an illusion, and as a knife in the dark. You will be by my side as Loptr, first prince of Jotunheim and my heir. You will deliver the Odinson to his accursed sire. You will agree to accompany them to Asgard."

At this, Loki startled. Laufey continued. "As part of the negotiations, Asgard has agreed to cede ownership of the Casket to Jotunheim -as if that was in question!- and accept an envoy to speak on Jotunheim's behalf. I wish you to be that envoy. A diplomat."

Loki was purely stunned. Laufey could not expect him to...did Laufey think he was granting him a favour?

Of course, Laufey was offering him everything he thought Loki wanted. Where was the sting in the tail? "So Father, that is the illusion. What of the knife?"

Laufey smiled and said a word that Loki had heard spoken of in only hushed tones and muted voices. "Ragnarok, Loki. You are to bring about Ragnarok."


	29. Chains

Laufey swept by Thor on his way out of Loki's apartments without even looking at him. No gloating, no taunts. Thor knew this did not bode well. He re-entered Loki's bedchamber to find the sorcerer -the prince- sitting in one of his reading chairs, looking absolutely calm. Thor had seen that expression on Loki's face more often than any other and had come to understand that it was one Loki hid behind when he was at his most guarded.

Loki looked up at him and lazily pulled one leg up so his ankle balanced on his opposite knee, allowing his hands to drape over his crossed leg. He looked the picture of royal assurance and indolence, in simple enough but elegantly-cut courtly clothing and with a golden band on his head. The gold contrasted strikingly with his green eyes.

Loki looked Thor up and down as if measuring him. Thor had put his hair back in a tail and was dressed plainly but well, black leather breeches and boots, and a red and blue doublet with what appeared to be Loki's sign on it, two green-handled throwing knives.

Loki too seemed to find what he saw pleasing. "Very handsome, Thunderer. All polished up and ready to be shown off. We shall leave for the Court very soon."

He brought one hand up to his lips and tapped them with a long forefinger. "Do you think you can keep your temper when I leash you, or will I need to give you instructions on how to properly behave before the Court?"

Thor fought the urge to laugh; strangely he simultaneously felt bitterly amused at the harsh, humiliating reality of Loki's words but also fondly amused by the sorcerer's attempts to needle him. Did Loki think Thor had learned nothing of him in their time together? He had told Loki that nothing would keep Thor from him, including Loki himself. Thor was beginning to realise that he, Thor, was the only reason he would lose Loki. He would have to start dealing with the reality of that also.

Instead of retaliating, either in anger or in love, and playing Loki's knotted, twisty games, he spoke straightforwardly. "I will not ask you what you spoke about with your king, Loki, but you do not have to shoulder that or any other burden alone any more. And I will not insist on sharing the burden, either. I will not push you again."

For a wonder, his words stopped Loki for a moment, startlement clear in the green eyes of his otherwise jaded expression. Thor grunted as he saw Loki move his fingers, and the chains that had bound Loki to the bedpost earlier now bound Thor's hands together behind his back, snaked around his ankles and connected to his collar. A leash handle manifested in Loki's lazily draped hand, attached to the loop of Thor's collar by a slender chain. He had not moved while he cast or broken eye contact with Thor. Loki tugged absentmindedly on the leash, not enough to force Thor to move, just enough to make clear that it was there.

Thor knew he should not push, hadn't he just said so? But he could not help himself. He was speaking truth. "The chains you wear are invisible, my love."

The snarl on Loki's face was enough to make clear that he had pushed. "Stop _talking_, Thor. You are truly a terrible advocate for yourself. Will you sit, please."

Thor growled and did not. Loki sighed. "Oh, speak up if you must. Just... do not make this harder."

"Six. So far." said Thor.

Loki looked wary. "Six what? Do I want to know?"

"Six strokes of my belt is what you have earned since you put this collar on me anew. I will not count that as worthy of a stroke in itself since I know you do it reluctantly, but continue to take advantage of my situation and I may change my mind."

With as much self-possession as he could, given the short chains attached to his ankles, he stepped so that he was looming over Loki, with his hands chained behind his back, crotch angled towards Loki's mouth as much as was possible. After the exertions of the morning, and trussed as he was, he was in no position yet to make good on any promises or threats made with his mouth or his cock, but that was no reason not to make clear exactly what he intended.

Loki's arrogance was undermined utterly by the flash of want that crossed his face. Thor fought the urge to laugh again.

Loki's expression changed to annoyed amusement and he replied "I see. One for ordering you to your knees, one for ordering you to the bath, one for ordering you to dress outside in the reception room, one for chaining you just now and one for ordering you to stop talking. Am I correct? No, that's five. What misdeed have I omitted, Thunderer? Do you really expect to get the opportunity to collect what you feel you are owed, my prince?"

"I will make the opportunity, Loki. So, continue as you were of course, I cannot stop you, but there will be consequences." He was grinning down at his sorcerer now, enjoying how Loki's eyes dropped to Thor's groin and flicked back up to his eyes and back down again. "The sixth is for putting me in clothes bearing your sign. You forget who owns whom, sorcerer."

Loki scoffed. "I hold your collar, Thor. Enough games."

Thor agreed. "Yes. You hold _me_, Loki. You do not need a collar."

Loki stood, wrapped his arms around Thor's chained torso and kissed him. "Alright, Thunderer. Now for the love I bear you, please, I beg you, shut up. You will need to act on the wisdom I know you possess, if reluctantly, to truly win the day. And that means using words judiciously."

Thor nodded. Loki was right. "Do not think I did not notice you judiciously slipping in a declaration of love among your words, sorcerer."

Loki grinned, but just for a moment. "Thor, after speaking with King Laufey, I have made a decision." The chains disappeared from around Thor.

Loki looked away, visibly collected himself and continued. Thor cupped his face in his hands and tilted Loki's face so he looked up at him. "So many secrets, and time has caught me up. Quiet, Thor, _listen_. Yes, I know. Seven. Alright, speak, if you must."

Thor sighed. "So Laufey intends you as a dagger in the heart of Asgard." Thor saw Loki's expression change to grim acknowledgement, and not a little surprise. "Loki, I have the measure of both of you. Father and son are not that different in many ways. Just in the ways that matter."

Loki frowned but remained silent.

Thor stroked a thumb alongside Loki's face "And your reward for the destruction of Asgard is to be me, cowed by the destruction of my realm, of myself, and collared at your whim."

Loki nodded, barely.

"Let me speak plainly then, Loki. I do not expect you to return to Asgard with me as mine. I will not compel you nor hold it over you should you refuse me. And I know why you will not come. No penance will cancel what I have done. I have accepted punishment for your sake, when I should be accepting it for the Jotunn people whom I have wronged. I am only beginning to understand what my crimes cost them, truly. I had simply wanted you to forgive me so I get what I want, what we both wanted. But I realise that this is not humility, Loki, there is no redemption in this, and it does not deserve forgiveness."

Loki had retreated into a mask of calm and self-possession, his jaw tense under Thor's hand. Thor did not, could not know Loki's heart in this. He took a deep breath and plunged on.

"Now it seems you will have the opportunity to do the same to my realm. What does Laufey wish of you? Will you tell me?"

Loki was silent for a moment. "I am to use your trust to arrange the death of your gatekeeper, and then Laufey-King will bring the anger of Surtr to Asgard."

_Heimdall dead. Asgard blinded. And in flames_. _Ragnarok._ "You will not do this thing, Loki. You would not...be like me."

Loki laughed outright. "I do not think so little of you, Thunderer. You would not plot in the shadows to do such a thing. You would show up at the Bifrost full of sound and fury, demand combat with Heimdall, and damn well expect Asgard to spark aflame because you desired it."

"Loki. Say you will not do this. You are talking about provoking Ragnarok." Even with having shared the details with him, Thor knew that Loki would find a way if this was his decision. If he felt he had reason.

Loki smirked. "Ragnarok. Months ago, I would have thought how sweet that would be. If Laufey had thought to offer Thor Odinson to me as my slave, what a reward that would have been. I would have taken you apart, Thunderer. I would have made you watch the destruction of Asgard and of yourself. I would have broken you in a way you never could bring yourself to break me, in the way you tried to break my people. And I would have recreated you as my toy. Put you back together to my liking. What if that is my decision now? How much would you want me if Asgard was destroyed by my hand, and you along with it?"

Thor shook his head. "Then you would not be Loki."

Loki scoffed. "Convenient for you, Thunderer. If that face does not suit you, why should I find another to wear?"

"Enough, Loki. Enough lies, enough poison, enough of your hateful games. Tell me, how would you put me back together? What version of me would be_ to your liking_. Who would you wish me to be, truly?"

Loki stilled, face blank. Thor could feel his panic. He stood closer to his sorcerer and placed both his hands gently around Loki's face, looking down at him where he sat in his elegant courtly garb, master of all he surveyed and more. Thor ran his thumbs along Loki's temples, and the sorcerer's eyes fluttered shut, causing Thor to regret the beautiful green now hidden.

He stroked next along the band of gold that Loki wore there, and then smiled possessively and knowingly as he began to move Loki's head forward into his crotch. Loki's eyes opened, green eyes full of tears, but he laughed quietly, smiling up at Thor. He allowed himself to be drawn from his seat and went to his knees, while Thor continued to caress his temple and his gold band and rolled his hips in front of Loki's face.

Despite having expended so much energy so shortly before, Thor felt his cock stir as Loki reached for the ties of his breeches. "Seven," Thor said softly. Loki stopped before his hand reached the leather, and glared at Thor with a question, unsure, outraged, but acquiescent, unshed tears still in his eyes.

Oh this was delicious. Loki hiding his pain by spewing hate and spinning lies one moment, pushing Thor away as hard as he could, then on his knees the next, begging for the comfort of giving up control and accepting Thor's commands or whims as the moment took him.

Thor decided to have mercy, and answered Loki's unasked question. "The seventh is for pretending to not want me exactly as I am, monster though I may be." Loki shook his head but started opening Thor's trousers and reached in, taking him in hand, and immediately swallowing Thor's half-hard cock.

_Norns_. Thor felt his cock grow in the hot wet suction of Loki's welcoming mouth, nudging the back of his throat. Thor used his grip on Loki's head to maneuver him as he wished. He had never been rough in this way with the sorcerer before but he felt the need to now, and knew Loki felt the same. Thor tightened his grip on Loki's head and started to pump into his mouth, down his throat, which Loki quickly adjusted to, taking all of it into his mouth without having used his hand once. Oh, he was a treasure, his sorcerer. They found a rhythm for three, four, five pumps and then Thor just held himself there for a count of three, prompting wide-eyes from Loki, and a tightening of his grip on Thor's hips.

He pulled up enough to allow Loki to take a breath through his nose and started to pump again, marvelling at the restrained gulping noises that Loki was making every time Thor thrust just far enough in and pulled far enough out. He looked at the standing mirror by the corner. "Loki. Turn a little. I want you to see this"

Thor pumped again and held himself there while turning Loki's head towards the mirror. Thor smiled at what was, he acknowledged if only to himself, quite an obnoxious smile as he saw his reflection, standing tall and dangerous over a kneeling Loki whose attention was otherwise entirely focused on Thor's cock in his hot quivering throat, blocking his breath.

Thor pulled out a little again so Loki could breath and he did, panting around Thor's cock. "Eight, nine, ten." Thor pushed back in without explanation and began to fuck Loki's face, hard enough for Loki to know that he was placed right now for Thor's pleasure and Thor's pleasure only. Loki was looking up at him pleadingly, drawing breath through his nose when he could in between thrusts as he continued to suck and swallow, tears beginning to fall involuntarily from the roughness of the treatment.

"Are you watching?" Thor turned Loki's head towards the mirror so he could see what was being done to him, what he was allowing to be done to him. Thor rolled his hips and held Loki's head so he could not look away as he did so. Thor withdrew to a gasp from Loki and began to slap his cock over Loki's tear- and drool-streaked face as he panted and tried to calm down. He never took his eyes from the mirror.

"Eyes up here now," commanded Thor. Loki stuck out his tongue to lick at Thor's cock as it swiped over his mouth, still slapping his face. "What...what were the extra three strokes for?" he managed to gasp. There was a trail of precum and saliva across Loki's face now. Thor grabbed Loki's jaw roughly and said "Open wide. Stick out your tongue. Choke on it." Loki obeyed, the sensation of his gag reflex and the instinctive jerks and twitches of his throat and tightly-held head were bringing Thor towards a peak far quicker than he had though possible.

"The extra three were because I want to whip you three more times, Loki. I am adding one, no _two_ more because you questioned me. That's twelve." Loki tried to protest or beg around Thor's cock, and this put Thor on the road to the inevitable. He started to fuck Loki's face without mercy now, using his mouth and those delicious noises to spur him as high as he could go.

Loki could no longer look in the mirror as Thor used him hard, but Thor watched for both of them and it was a thing of cruel beauty. Loki red-faced and tear-streaked, holding onto Thor like a supplicant, Thor snapping his hips into Loki's face, hands clamped on his head, twisted in his hair. Loki was crying now around Thor's cock, great heaving sobs when he could grab a breath at all. Thor found himself on the home stretch.

"You should have used your energy to breathe instead of begging," he gasped out as he fucked harder into Loki's face. Loki hung on to Thor's hips and had his eyes squeezed shut. Thor knew that Loki could end this at any time, end _Thor_ at any time but he did not. As he came, Thor gasped Loki's name, wondered what he had done to earn the trust of this quicksilver, brightfire soul, this beautiful, daring, intoxicating man.

Loki was too exhausted to swallow, so Thor found himself pulling out of a mouthful of drool and seed which spilled down Loki's chin and clothing as he heaved for breath and collapsed to his side, still sitting up but barely. Thor knelt beside him while he recovered himself, and after a few moments kissed Loki on the cheek, murmuring how beautiful he was and how good that it had been for Thor and asking him gently if Loki was alright, seeking reassurance that Thor had not gone too far. Loki gasped a sticky laugh and said hoarsely "You will know if you have gone too far, Thunderer, I will be sure to draw your attention to it."

Thor smiled and kissed his cheek again and made to get a cloth from the baths. Loki instead gestured and removed all evidence of their sport from their skin and clothing. "Thirteen," grinned Thor. "Wh..." said Loki before he could catch himself.

Thor's breathing was returning to normal. "Thirteen is an appealing number, is it not? This one is for cleaning my seed off without asking permission. You may lead in public for the moment, but I do and always will in the bedroom, Loki."

He rose off the floor pulling Loki to stand with him. He slapped Loki on the rump and chuckled at the noise of outrage that resulted. "Now, Prince Loptr, you may restrain me again, for fear I will ravish you in the throne room before your father and his court otherwise."

He placed his hands behind his back, still grinning. "Now, tell me, what decision have you come to? For or against initiating the destruction of the Nine Realms?"

Loki did not understand how Thor could be so light of heart in this moment, no matter how thoroughly he had enjoyed fucking Loki's face. Loki's jaw and throat felt very thoroughly fucked, though he did not want to heal the aches just yet. Loki knew that Thor was taking the threat of Ragnarok seriously but he no longer seemed overly worried.

Loki couldn't help but be distracted by Thor's emotional and sexual ambush, true, yet looming doom for the Nine Realms was still in the ascendant in his mind. It would not stop at Asgard. If Ragnarok was truly what Laufey planned, it would eventually encompass the Nine Realms, in accordance with fate. Whether in the decades coming or a century or two later, unstoppable disaster would come to them all.

_Are you mad, father?_ Loki could not bring himself to ask the question after Laufey outlined his plan.

Loki had suddenly understood that Helblindi was indeed dead. He could not have believed it of his father before now. Loki thought he knew why, too. Helblindi had found out about the Casket and had objected to it being hidden while it was needed for the war effort. He may even have threatened to tell Loki about Laufey's lies. And so he perished at his father's hands, for no other reason than for championing the defence of their realm.

Laufey was sure that in the aftermath of Ragnarok's destruction of Asgard, Loki would be content with his war prize of Thor Odinson in the heel of the hunt for whatever time they had left to them. A beaten-down king without a kingdom, a god whose powers were contained by a crude collar and his lack of understanding of the breadth and scope of his godhead. One who could be made pay every minute of every day for his crimes. One who had to look at the face of his kingdom's destroyer every day while he fucked him, performed for him.

Loki's skin crawled at this. There was enough of Laufey in him to revel in such a victory, if he allowed himself to embrace it, he knew. He dreaded that part of his nature.

He had always known he would not, could not, be a king to match his father, not and remain himself, remain truly Loki. It was not a question of ability, but of character, and Loki had found fault in himself in this for most of his life, for his rejection of the viciousness of his nature. 

He had castigated himself for being not being ruthless enough to do as a king of his father's calibre must do. Now he found himself to be only thankful. He would not have to face the burden of exterminating an entire realm, mostly innocents who had no part in the destruction of Jotunheim. He would not face the horror of seeing Thor's intensely blue eyes deaden into despair and his beaming smile become a puppet's facsimile.

He would die first. It might come to it, and he was willing if it was necessary. Thor would certainly die for his realm if it was the price he had to pay.

How did this happen? When did Loki become prepared to die for his own realm and for Asgard, side by side with the King of Asgard? He glared at Thor, who raised an eyebrow, and smiled, patiently awaiting an answer, or perhaps just awaiting their summons to the throne room. The reversal of their public positions seemed to be spurring Thor on to more inventive games between them.

Thor still required training in this regard, of course, and Loki allowed himself a faint ribbon of hope that perhaps they would have the time together to do so. He almost found himself wishing for their time together in the tents again. It was simpler. And he had had almost free reign there to torture Thor for his own amusement. Strange that they now felt like good times. Loki laughed and then sighed and wondered if he himself was going mad.

"I don't have a plan, Thor. All I know is for the moment, your only goal is to leave in peace with the Allfather. Everything else can be negotiated, you understand? Even Mjolnir."

Thor growled. Loki placed a hand over his mouth.

"Enough. You are too foolish to realise that Mjolnir is but a focus for you and your power, not its source. You are too foolish to realise that if you really tried, or if I really motivated you, that you could break that collar like an egg. You are too foolish to realise that everything depends on you reaching home safely. Asgard cannot defend against Surtr without her king. And her king is no longer Odin, no matter what today's circumstances bring."

"Fourteen," muttered Thor from behind Loki's palm.

"_No_, Thor. You will not punish me for telling the truth. Have you listened well?"

Thor nodded mulishly.

"Well, then."

They sat and waited for the summons, and did not touch.


	30. Court

"Everything will be well, sorcerer."

For the first time, Loki was sure that Thor had told him a plain lie, even if it was told with the most confident of Thor's sunshine smiles.

They followed the warrior that had been sent to escort them, Thor in chains again. Loki turned to sweep clean all evidence of his occupation of the apartments as he left. He did not intend to return.

The doors to the throne room were open, and Loki could see Laufey lounging, more than a tinge of contempt evident in his posture. Loki heard Thor grunt as they walked in together. Odin was standing in front of the throne, not exactly a supplicant, but neither an equal, perhaps at best a guest.

In that moment, Loki's relief was profound that he had kept his relationship to the Jotunheim crown a secret. Had Thor realised in the first days of Loki's capture that he had such a hold on Laufey, it could have been Laufey treating for his son's life at the foot of the Asgardian throne, and probably not standing before it, either.

The Casket of Winter sat on the dais beside Laufey and his throne, Mjolnir still trapped in its icy grasp. No doubt Thor could feel her straining for him. Loki was not attuned to her seidr but her yearning for her wielder was so strong, and his for her, even Loki could sense it.

Jotunn nobles lined the room. Loki was glad that they were holding themselves as nobility should; none appeared ready to give into the natural urge to scream at the Odinson, or Odin himself, to toss detritus, lay curses. They sat silent, watching. What did they know of the Casket, and Laufey's plans?

Sif and the Warriors Three stood to front of the Jotunn nobles, all looking in good health, bar a few stitches and bruises. Loki raised an eyebrow at Sif and she returned a tight smile. It had gone as well as he had hoped in the Asgard camp then.

Sif was smart enough -and had been victim of Loki's tricks enough- to have realised what Loki's goal had been in his assault. She mouthed something at him as he passed. _Caution, Loki_. Odin had shared his strategy with her, then. And whatever it was, Loki would have to hold onto caution.

He steadied himself and centred himself anew as he stood before the Court.

Odin turned to face where Thor and Loki stood at the entrance. He deliberately turned his back on Laufey, who looked amused. Thor went to one knee, not very smoothly in his chains. Odin wore fatigue on his face, but his posture was that of a king, and and as his attention fell on them, Loki felt as a petitioner at _his_ court. Thor may be king, but Odin was Allfather, and Loki understood the urge to drop the knee.

Odin smiled a surprisingly tender smile at Thor, somehow not at odds with his martial demeanor.

"You are well come, Prince Loptr and King Thor." Laufey emphasised the titles. "Odin-king, may I present my sole surviving child and his captive."

Loki took this as his cue to kick Thor off balance, and he placed his boot on Thor's neck to keep him prostrate, splayed on the floor of his enemy's palace as a war-prize. He could feel the vibration of Thor's growl through the leather of his boot. He heard the Warriors Three shift their stance.

Odin did not respond directly to Laufey, nor to Loki's humiliation of Thor. He sighed and said, "Stand, Thor, my son, my king."

Loki removed his foot, allowing Thor to shuffle to his feet. Loki could feel the humiliation steaming from him as clearly as if they still were bound together, and realised that he took no pleasure in Thor's suffering.

_Enough, then. The performance of Thor's punishment is over. No more theatrics._ Thor could never truly atone for all he had done; the best he could do was work to mitigate it. _And I will hold his nose to the grindstone to see it done if necessary._

Odin bowed to Thor. "Your majesty," he intoned. Thor inclined his head in response. "Allfather," he said huskily. Odin eyed Loki. Loki had thought that Thor favoured his mother in looks, but he also had much of his father's bearing and magnetism, even if yet to fully mature.

The force of Odin's gaze struck Loki. "Prince Loptr, is it."

Loki inclined his head respectfully, as due from a member of the royal family to a visiting royal. No more, no less. Loki would grudgingly give Odin his due.

"Loki, King Odin. Just Loki."

He did not like the idea of Odin addressing him by either of his names, but if he had to choose, it would be by the one that was a byword for trickster, mischief-maker, trouble-rouser.

"Loki. I suppose I see in the man you have become the child you once were."

Loki was absolutely still. _Is the Allfather mocking me?_ _Caution._

"We... have met before, Allfather?"

Odin smiled. "Laufey-King has not told you. Why would he not?" He turned slightly to glance at Laufey, who was sitting forward in his throne now, frowning.

"I shall leave it to your father to tell the story. Be sure to tell it true, King Laufey. Your boy has enough reason to hate kings of Asgard." Thor winced, and bowed his head.

Laufey had obviously not been expecting this. He rose and strode to Odin's side. "I shall tell it now, before the court and the whole of Jotunheim." He turned his gaze to Loki, and paused for a moment. When he spoke, it was clearly with reluctance.

"The truth is, at the end of the last war between our realms, my queen and I almost lost our firstborn, whose name was to be Loptr, first prince of Jotunheim. Almost lost him to the curse of being born too small, lost to the tradition of exposure at the temple. But my child was almost lost instead to a worse fate. He was almost kidnapped and sacrificed to the enemies of our realm."

Loki did not know what to think. He knew he had been born in the final days of the war, and that he had been abandoned in the temple as was tradition for smaller, weaker children, most of whom died of exposure on the very first night.

His privilege as the child of the royal household was to be brought home having survived one night. Jotunheim's pax Asgardia, the poverty that had resulted from years of war with Asgard and subsequent defeat, had plunged the realm into such poverty that it was frowned upon to keep a weaker child. To risk the waste of resources for stronger children who had a better chance of survival. Jotunheim had become a cruel place for the vulnerable. 

So Odin had found Loki abandoned and wished to take him, as a sacrifice? What did this mean? Loki looked to Laufey for further answers. _Caution_.

Odin harrumphed. "The _truth_, Laufey-king."

Laufey glared at Odin, who merely waited, serene. "The _truth_ is, not content with the Casket of Winters, Odin-king intended to take the newborn yet-to-be-named Loptr to Asgard as a hostage and raise him as a son, side-by-side with his own son."

Thor's mouth fell open and Loki felt Thor's eyes on him, but Loki could continue to look only at Laufey. And Laufey looked only at Loki now.

"Odin, having stolen the Casket, came upon you after the final battle, exposed in the temple to test your will to live. I had followed him in an attempt to retrieve the Casket. When I caught up, he had you in his arms. You... or a green-eyed Aesir child identical to you."

Odin interrupted now, and Laufey did not object. "A powerful seidrmaster had been born to the royal house of Jotunheim, a babe as yet un-named and fated to die as such in the temple. Sent then to the empty halls of Hel, never named, never acknowledged, the forgotten first prince of the realm who was never truly born, never was. A babe whose survival instinct and raw power caused him to shapeshift to a form pleasing to the one who held him in arms. A newly born god, it would seem."

Loki felt his throat close up. He had no memory of this of course. But how could any of it be true?

Odin's glance took in his son and Loki together. "I asked for treaty, and we talked for some time, as kings, but also as victor and defeated. To the victor go the spoils, and I had the abandoned son of Laufey coddled in my arms and the great weapon of Jotunheim wrapped in my cloak by my side, both taken by right of conquest. I had no reason to treat with my defeated enemy."

"But even then as a young king, I understood the value of compromise and knew if both Laufey-king and I were each to give up something to each other in this exchange, our kingdoms were more likely to eventually return to a true peace. And truly, uppermost on my mind was that as a new father myself, I knew the stealing of a child to be an unconscionable crime."

"Laufey-king demanded I return the treasure of his people to him. I asked him which treasure he spoke of, the babe-in-arms or the Casket? I offered peace in the name of Asgard in exchange for the babe or the Casket, either one. And, I said, either one would be a great boon to Jotunheim, but only one would be of value to Asgard, and I preferred that one, the babe."

Loki stared and anger began to curdle in him. Odin had wished to take him to Asgard, to exploit him as Thor had. _The apple does not fall far_. Loki felt shaken. But he knew who he was, though these men, these kings, would each mould him in the image of their ambitions if they could. He was Loki, and would have been no matter where he had been raised, or by whom.

Odin sighed, his long years evident in every line in his face, in the tired slope of once broad shoulders, in his stance which showed clearly that he used to stand taller as well as broader but time had eroded his physical might.

"I tried to persuade your father of the value of raising the heirs to our kingdoms together, the old custom of taking hostages from a defeated foe. Laufey and Jotunheim would retain the Casket, the engine and heart of this realm, in exchange for giving me custody of his son to raise as a bridge between us."

Thor made a noise, but Loki ignored him. He could not care for Thor's feelings right now. The royal house of Asgard was a thorn in Loki's side, truly. He wished he did not love one of them so dearly, he truly did.

"I promised him that Loptr would be raised as a prince of Jotunheim as well as an Asgardian. But Laufey's pride would not allow his heir to be raised by his enemy, no matter that it was to the benefit of both our peoples. I admit, I considered entirely refusing a compromise and just taking the babe and the Casket together, leaving Laufey to the ruins of his kingdom."

"But Laufey-king made his choice."

Laufey scowled but did not disagree or look at Odin.

"He demanded his son and agreed that the Casket would reside in Asgard." Murmurs broke out among the assembled Jotunn nobility, who had thus far remained silent and aloof. "Laufey's son and his throne would be forfeit if he broke this agreement."

Odin looked to Laufey now. _Treaty-breaker_.

"He is my _son_," Laufey grated. "And do not think it was simply familial sentiment which drove me to this bargain, or at least not only that. A Jotunn seidrmaster, and a legitimately born heir to the Crown at that, in the hands of the Borson would have been a disaster for this realm, eventually. Either sacrificed to Odin's victory or raised as Odin's own, his power exploited by the throne of Asgard, his blood curdled and polluted by Asgardian ways. I would not and could not stand it, as father or as king."

"You're a fool or a liar, or both." Odin's voice was a growl.

Loki stiffened at the blunt insult, despite his anger at his father.

"Your son could have stood tall as a Jotunn prince of Asgard, stood as an equal to the king of Asgard in due time, having grown into a man and a king himself alongside my heir. Loptr could have embraced his godhead, his heritage and his adopted family, all three, and been a most influential wielder of power, military, magical and diplomatic, in the Nine Realms. Would you not have been satisfied for your heir to whisper in the ear of mine and see his will done throughout the realms?"

"Laufey, we could have nurtured and shaped him together to be worthy ruler of a prosperous and peaceful Jotunheim, while Thor ruled Asgard, and together as brothers they would have overseen the Nine. You and I could have grown from enemies to allies and perhaps even to friends. But you preferred to deny me for jealousy, for fear of the assault on your pride."

"Thus the Casket, a useless war trophy, came with me to Asgard to sit purposeless in our Vaults. To be the source of another war between our realms when your patience ran out and you broke your word by sending your young warriors to steal it back. Meanwhile, your son remained here, shunted aside from his birthright and his very name for your jealousy of my victory."

Laufey swallowed, clearly on the very edge of losing his reason. "You wanted Loptr and I would deny you what you wanted, despoiler! I would never allow a child of mine to be corrupted by the Aes. To be used to grind Jotunheim under Asgard's heel. Never."

Loki had heard enough. It turned his stomach but much like Thor's questioning of Laufey's motives and actions the previous night, Odin's words rang painfully true and besides, Laufey's own words were transparently self-serving. Laufey had refused to pay the price in heartbreak and pride for the good of his realm. Had he sacrificed his son for the good of his realm, how different might things have been. Jotunheim in retaining the Casket would have prospered again and no more children would have been abandoned to die.

What worth then did Loki's own sacrifices have? All of Loki's sufferings were meaningless, for nothing, a balm for his father's wounded sense of self, Laufey's bitterness at his defeat manifesting in his disruption of Odin's schemes, no matter that they may have been to Jotunheim's ultimate benefit. He had just heard it from his father's lips, whether or not Laufey realised what he had truly been saying. Loki swallowed, his mouth dry, his throat clicking around the choked emotion that threatened to overwhelm him.

Ignoring the Court and the Asgardians, he addressed his father hoarsely. "So this is why Prince Loptr died in the temple, and why I, your disinherited son, was raised as Loki, a child who lived an almost parallel life to the rest of the family and household. So you would not be shamed by the raising of your son by the enemy, even if that was the price of peace and prosperity after your defeat in a war begun by you!"

"You gained nothing, Father, except a salve for your pride, and cost your realm and your people everything. And as soon as I came of age and no longer suited Odin's purposes, and no longer posed a threat to your pride, you risked all to steal the Casket back, breaking your word. _I see you now_."

A susurration of disquiet came from the gathered nobility who ringed the Court, surrounding Laufey and his guests. Laufey reached out to Loki, imploring him wordlessly.

Loki took a deep breath. "You left our people suffer for a generation because of _me_. Not for love of me but for what I represented to you, a trophy. You gave up what our people needed for what you wanted. You have made me complicit in this horror by dint of my very existence. And if that was not enough, you condemned our people to more horrors with your invasion of Asgard. And why? Because of your need for vengeance, as a balm to your wounded pride."

"You stole the Casket, which you had agreed by treaty to leave in Asgard's possession, and brought war down on us, refusing to use it to defend against the invaders whose right to claim it back was based on your own word. And you saw Helblindi dead for fear that he would stand in your way. Because you wished for selfish vengeance. Because you did not wish to pay the price for defeat. Because you thought it did not matter if our people paid for you to act on your pain."

The mutterings from the assembled nobles became louder at this. Laufey looked around, his eyes darting like those of a trapped animal.

Loki spelled an arcane symbol in the air. "Enough of this. I am done with being treated as a tool by kings. I am Loki Spellweaver, Loki Pathfinder, Loki Lightbringer, Loki Firestarter and I am no-one's tool nor prize nor plaything." Chains fell from around Thor, and Loki took a moment to bask in the feel of his seidr's brushing along Thor's solid, strong body, perhaps for the last time.

Loki walked past his father and the kings of Asgard, old and young, up the steps where the Casket rested beside Laufey's throne. He shut the Casket in a smooth motion, freeing Mjolnir from its crippling cold. He felt Thor raise his hand and Mjolnir spun before Loki, reflecting and refracting a myriad of colours as she shook off the icy depths of the freeze that had trapped her. She leapt joyously to Thor's yearning hand.

Loki stood between the throne and the Casket, and looked down at his father and the kings of Asgard. "The Casket stays here," he said. "Past agreements, such as they were, are null and void, and the Casket reverts to its rightful place." Odin looked to Thor, who nodded.

"Laufey remains as king. This is his realm and his responsibility, and I would not have any not of Jotunheim interfere in her destiny again."

At Loki's glare, Thor nodded, stiffly.

Laufey sputtered, "By what right...!"

The dam broke in Loki. He descended one step from the dais, furious. "By right of sacrifice! By right of service! I have paid the price! Enough, Laufey-king! You will do your duty!"

Laufey growled, "My throne is not yours to give to me or anyone else, boy."

Loki smiled, the smile he knew made him resemble his father at his most cruel. "Yes, Father, it is. Or do you wish me to bring my wrath down on it, and ask the King of Asgard to bring his? Do not force me to break the throne, or you."

Loki saw the sneer creep onto his father's face and knew what he was to say before the words even formed. "You think the Odinson listens to you? It's clear who is whose master, Loki. You speak of sacrifice and service and it is clear that all you wish for is to serve his cock. I could have ruled Asgard through you, had you enough sense to take him by the heart, and it was yours for the taking. Instead you have let him tie strings to your own and he leads you around by it like a _pet_."

Loki sighed. He was aware that the whole of the Court was listening, the whole of what remained of the ruling class of Jotunheim. But he had to make his position clear, even if it revealed his most private thoughts and desires. He would pay the price of service to Jotunheim. "You think to figure out who leads between the Odinson and your own son, Father, but in so doing, you are asking the wrong question. If I must answer the question of who is whose master, I will say that Thor leads between us, _because I allow it_. I am the one put on his belly, true, is that what you would have me acknowledge? I do so gladly."

"I will kneel at his feet and beg for his mercy, safe in the knowledge that he would reverse our positions at the snap of my finger, and I revel in it, the freedom, the trust, the _power_. I have trained him to perform as I wish, and he joyfully accepts it. I am in control, _because he allows it_. Do you understand, now?"

Loki felt tears in his eyes as he thought of the long journey he had endured before he and Thor had reached this point, and he did not look at Thor.

"I will never be a slave to anyone again, do you understand? DEATH. FIRST."

He turned back to the throne before Laufey could digest what he had said, or answer, and stood at its right, beside the Casket. Laying his left hand on the arm-rest of the throne and his right on the Casket, he faced the Court, praying that the deep truths he had revealed about himself and his relationship with the Thunderer would not disrupt his claim to act as Regent here. He could not allow Laufey to continue to act unrestrained, especially now with the Casket of Winters at Laufey's feet. Loki would not take the throne himself, for one he wanted neither the pomp nor the status; but the more painful truth was that a throne would suit Loki ill.

But he could not allow Jotunheim to go without leadership. He would not allow an outside power to shepherd his realm through these times.

"The palace's protections against the Bifrost are lifted here now. His majesty King Thor and his majesty the Allfather will take their companions and be _gone_ from this realm until such time the Court of Jotunheim sees fit to extend an invitation to them. Your standing army here, whose existence is currently at my mercy, will follow as soon as can be arranged, or it will suffer the wrath of this realm at my hands. Know this to be truth."

Sif and the Warriors Three moved carefully over to Thor and Odin's sides, never taking their eyes off Loki, never daring to turn their backs to him. Loki ordered a soldier to escort them to the roof, which she did with an apologetic look to Laufey who stood glowering. Loki thought Thor was about to say something to him, but Odin placed a hand on his shoulder and caught his son's eye.

Odin bowed, a deep, respectful bow to Loki, and nodded at Laufey before turning to follow their escort. Sif and the Warriors waited for Thor to act, and after a moment, he did the same as Odin, clearly frustrated. Heeled by their faithful warriors and companions, the kings of Asgard made to return home.

Loki stood by the throne, before his father and the Court, and awaited judgement.


	31. Asgard part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I decided to divide the final chapter in two. Sorry, I know I suck XD

Loki was somewhat drained from walking between worlds, but he had arrived successfully where he intended. The Asgardian skies above him were pregnant with early summer rains, and Loki could feel the faint traces of Thor's weather magic swirling around the high clouds.

The Thunderer was in good form, then, his contentedness sending tendrils of gentle seidr throughout his realm. Large water-laden masses were coalescing and scudding lazily across the sky, about to bring welcome rains to the fertile soils below, making them ever greener.

Loki hovered there, intangible, wondering if the Watcher could see him even skywalking. He thought not, but he might soon find out. No doubt Thor had sent Heimdall instructions to inform him if Loki, or any Frost Giant, was seen in Asgard.

Loki had already made his decision, and would press on regardless. Loki had spent the last six months avoiding thoughts of the Thunderer during the day, and spent his nights with him in dreams.

Six weeks after the departure of the Asgardian army, Loki realised that his mind and heart had calmed somewhat and he began to wake each morning without a chasm of loneliness and anger beckoning to him.

Three months after, he began to wake feeling the absence of a heavy arm thrown across him, without a large warm golden body weighing carelessly on top of at least half of his.

Six months later, now; he simply yearned. The empty space in his bed was nothing towards the desire in his head, heart and body that only Thor could fill.

It had been six months of pain, pain that had slowly transmuted from something too painful to manage to something now that he could embrace. Missing Thor had recently almost begun to feel like having him back, in a way. The first six weeks had been the worst, hating and loving Thor in equal measure, never wanting to see him again but craving him. It had been torture.

In time, that eased to the pain of missing the warmth and security and pleasure provided by Thor's body, then to simply missing the man himself with every fibre in his being. Loki knew that he could and should go to him; if for nothing else, then to draw things to a close.

For all he knew, Thor had come to the same conclusions, and probably more quickly and with fewer regrets. A dalliance with a fiery enslaved enemy was exhilarating in the circumstances of war, a welcome distraction from the rigors and demands of command, but now that Thor was six months back into his duties as king of Asgard, he likely thought of his battlefield passions with Loki quite differently.

Men said many things, made many impossible promises, in the heat of the moment in war and love both.

So Loki was prepared. Perhaps it would not come to the worst. In the absence of a desire for Loki, Thor might still welcome him as a friend, even a companion, and allow him to stay a night as a guest and to speak with Frigga, if she was willing. Loki had never again quite lost control of the demons in his head after her strong and gentle care that morning.

Loki doubted he would have survived the first six weeks of regency in Jotunheim had it not been for her strength shoring up his own, the strength she shared with him, the part of herself she left with him. A generous woman, beyond generous; no wonder Thor had grown up to be a man who believed the whole of Ydraggsil to be at his feet if he only strove hard enough to make it so, and often indeed made it so.

The King of Asgard had made no attempts to communicate with Jotunheim in either a personal or diplomatic capacity in these last six months, for which Loki was grateful, if saddened. Loki was glad of the space. Jotunheim had been able to begin getting on its feet without Asgardian interference. And Loki himself had been able to come around to the thoughts of seeing Thor again in his own time. He just wished he could be sure of the reasons for Thor's silence.

He skywalked to a green close to the Palace, and stepped fully into Asgard. It had begun to rain, the soft fat warm drops of a summer sun shower casting a halo of rain and sunlight over everything. Loki closed his eyes as the rain enveloped him and thought of Thor's strong, gentle embrace.

It took only a deep breath to centre himself as he made for the gates of the Palace. He could have simply skywalked there and into the grounds, but that may have been interpreted wrongly, as he was already in Asgard without permission. He approached the two Einherjar on guard duty, wondering briefly if they had served in Jotunheim.

One of them nodded to him in a familiar way, so probably, yes. Would this make his visit more or less difficult? He began to wonder would it have been wiser to notify Asgard of his intentions. He abhorred the idea of pomp and ceremony at one extreme and feared an outright rejection before even seeing Thor on the other. Loki only wanted to speak to Thor, for as long a time as Thor would spare him, in private if possible.

Before he even spoke, the Einherjar who had nodded at him had despatched her fellow guard to fetch Lady Sif. So Sif was Thor's personal gatekeeper. Loki relaxed a little, knowing that it was unlikely that there would be an attempt to haul him off to the dungeons at least. Lady Sif would hear him out. She would let him know if Thor truly was well, and perhaps take a message to him if Loki was not welcome to see him. Loki gathered his seidr around all the same, just in case he had to step away. The remaining guard said nothing to him, but did not seem perturbed by his presence.

After a few moments, Sif appeared alone, smiling and to Loki's surprise, with an embrace for him. "We did not know when -or if!- you would come. Thor is in the training field, observing preparations for the tourneys. You look well, Loki. You are well come to the Palace."

Loki kissed her cheek and said, "I was not certain that would be the case, considering my last act towards you all was to unceremoniously kick you out of mine. It's good to see you, Sif."

She laughed. "Not a one of my interactions with you went or ended as I expected, sorcerer. I am glad to have you on the back foot for once." _A warrior and strategist to the core, this one. Always looking for an advantage. Something we share._

They walked together otherwise unescorted through the Palace, and though Loki had travelled and seen much throughout the Nine Realms, he was impressed by its size, elegance and opulence. Nothing he would desire, but he could admire the fine materials and excellence of the craftsmanship.

Sif sensed his mood and chatted lightly about gossip throughout the Realms and the upcoming tourneys. Eventually they came to a plain balcony and balustrade, one of many that surrounded a training ground. Thor was below on the field, his back to Sif and Loki as he and the Warriors Three stood before teams of warriors who all seemed mesmerised by their young king's attentions.

Thor purely glowed in the summer sun. His hair was even more fair than it had been, absorbing and refracting sunlight in loose dark and light blond ropes. _There he is, Asgard's golden king_. Loki did not know if his thoughts were tinged with bitterness or with awe. As always Thor seemed bigger than his backdrop would allow, large and golden and light of heart, muscles rippling as he gestured. Even beside his warriors, he looked to be built on a slightly different scale, in perfect proportion so it was not obvious how large he really was until seeing him in comparison to someone of a more typical size. More than ever before that Loki had seen, he looked truly himself here on his home soil. 

Leaning on the wide shelf of the balcony, Loki watched with hunger in his eyes as he drank in the sight.

Sif slapped him lightly on the shoulder. "Take that starving puppy look off your face, sorcerer."

Loki scowled at her but reassembled his features into something more respectable.

Below, the warriors roared with laughter at one of Thor's quips as he brought his no doubt inspiring address to an end, and the meeting broke up. Thor, still grinning a boyish smile as he and the Three turned to leave, glanced upwards as if drawn by some invisible force, and his blue eyes meet Loki's green.

Surprise registered for a moment and then he smiled anew, a smile of true sunshine. None of his companions had registered Loki's presence and Thor clapped each one on the back before making his way up to the balcony.

"Loki. Loki!"

Thor seemed astonished and delighted to see him, and a weight he hadn't been quite aware of fell from Loki's shoulders. Thor embraced him by cupping his neck, stroking his thumb along his cheek, as if he couldn't quite believe what he was seeing. They stood looking at each other for a moment until Sif cleared her throat and suggested that they retire to Thor's private quarters.

Thor did not respond immediately until Sif nudged him and said "Go, before you both turn to salt. I will have lunch sent along to your sitting room, Thor."

Thor almost shook himself, and thanked her.

Sif replied, "I am your servant in these matters, my King" and bowed sardonically as she retreated.

Thor rolled his eyes and said, "Shall we? I cannot believe...I knew you would come."

Loki did not respond as they walked side by side, the King of Asgard escorting a guest, to the royal wing and inside to a comfortable sitting room. Loki waited for an invitation to take a chair, but as he turned to Thor to follow his lead, instead he found himself swept into a tight embrace.

"Ah, it is so good to see you. To see you here. Even if for a short time. You will stay, Loki, will you not? For a few days at least." Loki was finally released as Thor set him back so he could search his face for an answer, holding both his hands in his. Loki did not know quite how to respond. "You are...a little overwhelming, Thunderer. It is good to see you too. I was not sure what kind of welcome to expect."

Thor looked somewhat saddened by this. "You will always be welcomed here, Loki. No matter what."

Servants arrived with a trolley and began to arrange the food on the table, a resplendent selection. The servants were trying not to obviously ogle the sight of their King holding both the hands of his guest in his own while gazing at him as if worried he would vanish once Thor's eyes moved elsewhere.

Unperturbed by their scrutiny, Thor kissed each of Loki's hands before waving him to a seat.

They sat in silence until alone again, and then the silence endured. Neither made a move for the food. Loki looked away for a moment, and when he looked back, Thor again looked indescribably sad.

Thor started, "We should..." just as Loki began, "How is...?" and they both went silent again.

"Please," said Thor.

Loki sighed. "I was merely asking after her majesty the Queen, your mother."

Thor nodded. "She is well, and resident in the Palace at the moment. No doubt Sif has informed her of your visit. She thinks of you often, I know. She would like to see you too, I am sure of it."

It was Loki's turn to nod. Silence fell again.

Thor spoke up. "I suppose I should ask after your father."

Loki smiled grimly. "He is well, as well as can be expected. He sits and broods on his throne. No doubt plotting. I think perhaps it would be better if I removed him from it, but I am ill-suited to govern, and perhaps even less to rule. Temperamentally, I mean."

Thor nodded. He understood Loki's weaknesses, and did not judge.

Loki continued. "There may be suitable candidates among the noble families but it would be too obviously a coup if someone other than a direct heir were to take the throne following Laufey's deposal, and I do not want upheaval. If he were to die, it would be convenient."

Thor stilled. "You would kill your father, Loki?" His voice was hushed; how amusing, he was genuinely shocked.

Loki had not even meant to suggest such a thing, but wondered if Thor really expected that of him. Why not find out.

"If I had to. Not in hot blood, nor cold for that matter. It would cost me, I am not a stone."

Thor paused. "Do I really know you at all, sorcerer?" he breathed, eyes large.

Loki snorted, irritated now. "Do you believe this of me, Thor?"

Thor softened, a smile returning to his lips, his eyes sparking with sardonic amusement.

"Yes, I do, Loki. I do not doubt you are ruthless when pushed. But neither do I doubt your resourcefulness, nor your resolve to avoid the excesses of power. Will you tell me your real plan to ensure stability in Jotunheim, despite the instability of its king?"

Loki relaxed, just a little.

"Truly, I have none as yet. The ruling families have made overtures to jointly rule, and I am working to prevent Laufey from destroying this fragile alliance. If pushed, I would replace him myself, I think, but not as his heir. I would send him safely and comfortably elsewhere, and assume his shape for the duration needed. It might even be amusing to prowl around Utgard as Laufey while safeguarding the realm. Of course, that would lead to a set of problems for the future. And frankly I do not wish to stay there in any form."

He looked away, his eyes unfocussing. "Soon, I think, all going well, I will be able to come and go as I please again."

Thor spoke. "You will..." Loki also spoke. "I must..."

Again, both fell silent.

"Go on," Thor said.

Loki took a deep breath and continued.

"Well. Since we are speaking of such things, I will share with you some... information you may need to be aware of."

He hesitated. He was not sure if Thor would want to know or care but he felt obliged to give warning.

"You know my father made treaty with Surtr." He did not like reminding Thor of the details, of how Laufey had offered Loki to Asgard but meant for him to use his position bring about the beginnings of Ragnarok.

"I fear that now Laufey is unable to meet the conditions of the agreement that Surtr will turn his sword of flames on Jotunheim in the stead of Asgard."

To Loki's surprise, Thor nodded.

"I thought this might happen. Now that we know that Surtr stirs, my advisors and I have been debating contingencies should Surtr strike any of the Nine, with Asgard as the priority of course," -he looked at Loki almost apologetically- "and Jotunheim as the most probable target. You can join us if you wish at our next meeting in two days time. If you have proof that Surtr is ready to act, I can make the case to the Council that we need to do likewise. I am in favour of bringing the battle to him and neutering the threat as far as possible, myself. Your word is good enough for me."

Loki just stared at him. Thor smiled at his shock.

"The Nine Realms lie under the care of Asgard, Loki. We must do as is needed to protect all of us. It would be good if Jotunheim was ready to stand with the rest of the Nine again, but if more time is needed, we will stand for you, and by you."

Loki was not sure what to make of this, for Jotunheim's right to stand as part of the Nine acknowledged again after so long. There was much work to be done before Jotunheim could do so, but now, there was something symbolic to aspire to, a restoration of esteem and status after the bread and water issues were dealt with. It had not occurred to him to hope for this.

He bowed his head in acknowledgement of Thor's generosity. "Thank you. That is far more than I expected." Thor smiled and said, 'It is the least of my duties to Jotunheim, and the Nine." The smile faded, and he paused, clearly trying to find a diplomatic way to say what was on his mind. "Loki, we should talk."

Loki looked up and smiled. "Must we, Thunderer? There will be time to talk tomorrow, if your invitation to stay is still open. For now, perhaps we could eat together, and you can show me the fabled Palace of Asgard afterwards."

Thor hesitated again, but agreed. Of course, the lunch spread was an absolute delight, the little of it that Loki could eat.

Loki walked hand-in-hand with the King of Asgard through his palace and its grounds, like lovers. Nobody paid them too much mind, although some Einherjar did a double-take as they recognised the king's companion. Nevertheless, Loki was as content as he had been in some time, enjoying the moment and the presence of his love by his side. Thor mostly succeeded in refraining from appearing as an excited puppy in showing to Loki the places he played as a child, trained as a young warrior, walked the corridors as a prince of the realm.

The gardens of Frigga were a revelation, and Loki could not decide if seidr had a hand in their beauty and ambiance. He could not feel any, so if there was seidr present it was interwoven with such skill that it was indistinguishable from the plant life.

Odin was also visiting with Frigga when Thor and Loki arrived. He nodded to Loki as he took his leave with Thor, who kissed Loki on the cheek and promised to return in time for dinner. Frigga gave Loki a motherly once-over as he approached her and bent the knee, and seemed pleased enough with what her maternal eye saw.

She raised him to his feet to embrace him and plant further kisses on each of his cheeks. They did not talk much, simply sat and enjoyed the peace of the garden. He was grateful that she did not enquire of his intentions or hopes, as he was not sure himself. Much would depend on what Thor wished to speak of.

Loki knew in his heart that Thor was going to speak of duty and of kingship and how despite his earnest wishes, he and Loki could never be. Loki would have to leave his love, and the part of himself that belonged to his love, behind on Asgard.

Perhaps in time he would come to look fondly on when he held the heart of the Asgardian king and god of thunder, and would have had the Nine Realms laid at his feet had he but asked. Loki told himself this, knowing that it would never be that easy for him, that a piece of himself would be ripped out and remain on Asgard forever, out of his reach, and he would always feel the agony.

It would be fine. Eventually, it would be fine.

Frigga touched his shoulder and he leaned into her, drawing comfort from her warmth. He had almost forgotten how beautiful she was, as beautiful as her son almost, and more wise and more kind. Thor would grow into those two, Loki hoped. He would eventually grow to be an Allfather to match Odin, and more. Loki was sure of this.

At dinner, the Warriors Three had clapped him on the back and invited him to stay for the tourney, and perhaps join them on a hunt later in the week. Volstagg boasting of the best venison in the Nine Realms awaiting them in the forests beyond the palace. Loki promised to join them if he was not called back to Jotunheim, to give himself an excuse in case his conversation with Thor took too difficult a turn.

Afterwards, they drank sparingly and played cards, the banter no different from their time together on the battlefields of Jotunheim. Loki suspected that Lady Sif had warned the others to keep the topics light while in the presence of Thor and Loki together, and indeed towards the end of the evening, when Thor stepped away for a few moments, Volstagg almost immediately asked Loki in a low voice if he was returning to Asgard on a more permanent basis.

Sif threw a sharp look at Volstagg which promised him sharper words later but all four nevertheless seemed to simultaneously lean forward and look around the room nonchalantly as if simply waiting for their king to return.

Loki said some words about duty and home, but in the absence of Thor, Volstagg pressed him.

"Why would you not? Jotunheim has a king. You cannot act as regent forever. You would want for nothing here. Fine weapons, tools for your magics, comforts. You would be best clothed, best fed, best entertained. You would have whatever you wish."

A ripple passed through the four as Thor returned to the room, and they stood to bid their king and his guest good night. Sif turned back and whispered, "You would be _safe_, sorcerer."

As they left, Thor put his arm around him affectionately. "You look tired, Loki."

"You really are overwhelming, Thunderer," he muttered, inches from Thor's gently smiling face. The smile faded.

Thor tried to speak again. "We really should..."

"I know," said Loki. "I know what you have to say, Thor. But not tonight, please. I will stay the night and we will speak tomorrow."

He pressed his forehead to Thor's, and as Thor's hand reached up to cup his face, Loki kissed him. "For now, it's time for bed."


	32. Asgard part 2

News of Loki's day in the palace as companion of the king had obviously spread. Servants and guards alike inclined their heads as he and Thor made their way back to Thor's quarters, and Thor nodded in return, but whispers began to follow them. Loki did not listen but wondered if the whispers sounded anything like 'the Jotunn witch' or 'Thor's Jotunn whore'.

Perhaps he should have come in his Jotunn skin and given them something to mutter about.

Thor's company and attention had driven all caution from Loki's mind. He had begun to ignore, forget, that he was in Asgard, the realm of those who considered him and his kind to be a natural enemy. Loki reminded himself sharply that he was safe there only by the grace of Thor. Even then some determined would-be assassin, perhaps driven mad by a war bereavement, might attempt to harm Loki despite his welcome in the palace by their king.

Once again, his safety was mainly dependent on keeping Thor's regard.

He began to consider if perhaps he had made a mistake in choosing to spend the night.

"Stop it, Loki." Thor placed his hands on Loki's upper arms, a comforting gesture. "Whatever thoughts are swirling behind those eyes, let me quell them." They had reached an opulent bedchamber, obviously a guest room, in Thor's quarters. Thor moved his hands to cup Loki's face, and Loki knew that Thor could see the raw emotion there.

He closed his eyes to keep some of himself to himself, and Thor took the opportunity to kiss him.

Thor murmured, "I will take of you whatever little or much you offer me, Loki, and no more. Tonight, I am yours, whatever you want of me that I can give. Forget about everything else, it does no good to bring it in here between us. There is only us, there is only us and now."

Thor was right. Loki could have this much tonight at least. Sometimes he realised that he pieced out in the tiniest quantities the happiness he could cope with for fear he would be overwhelmed, but tonight he would risk taking all he wanted. Let him be overwhelmed by the joy of being with his love, freely and with no barriers between them. He placed his hands on Thor's broad chest to centre himself, and the warmth, strength and solidity of the Thunderer gave him some peace. He stroked downwards with both hands, feeling for the ties of Thor's tunic and felt the thrill of proximity and touch racing up and down his own body.

Pushing Thor down on the bed, Loki straddled him and started pulling off his own clothing, handing Thor his trust and wanting to hide nothing from his love. He smiled at Thor's laugh of delight, and started kissing Thor in between divesting himself of clothes.

Thor rolled him over on his back and helped him pull off his boots and breeches before straddling Loki in turn, though Thor was still mostly clothed. Loki embraced the feeling of vulnerability that came with being near-naked with a near fully-clothed Thor who had a distinct expression of desire in his eyes.

Thor interlaced the fingers of his left hand with Loki's right, placing his other hand behind Loki's head and bending down to kiss Loki.

Loki felt the weight of Thor's body begin to relax on his nearly naked one, and he wrapped his free arm around Thor's shoulders to keep him close. They stayed kissing for some time, revelling in the intimacy of the simple act after their long separation.

Thor moved to kiss Loki's cheek and neck, causing Loki to curl his toes and tilt his hips as he felt the Thunderer grind his half-swollen cock, still trapped in the leather of his breeches, against Loki's thigh.

Thor murmured again in his ear. "I love you most like this, Loki. Open and vulnerable and only for me. Such a gift from my beautiful sorcerer."

Loki quickly quashed the sadness that threatened to rise in him that he was to lose this soon, this handing of the burden of his trust to Thor. He reminded himself that contrary to his worst fears, Thor still accepted Loki, still had desire for him, despite Loki's absence of six months, six long months in which Loki's spell on Thor had time to fade and even be replaced by that of another, or many others. Others who did not have the burden of cruelty and vengeance and war in their shared story._ There is only us, and now_.

Thor pulled his tunic off one-handed, and smiled down at Loki. Loki decided to truly savour the moment; the Thunderer as golden as Loki had ever seen him, leaning over Loki with an expression that held affection and a heated intent; the comfort and safety of the bedchamber, soft sheets beneath Loki, and the pillows beneath his shoulders; the warm summer night breeze coming in the open window; the moonlight shining in with the promise to give way to rising dawn and sunshine in only a few hours; all this after a day that Loki spent with his love in peace and tranquility.

_The Thunderer has ruined me._

Thor was kissing his way down Loki's chest and stomach, driving most thoughts out of Loki's head as he went. Thor, with a very familiar smug look, briefly reappeared directly in front of Loki's face and held his palm between them.

"Lick," he commanded.

At Loki's sceptical look, he placed his hand gently over Loki's mouth.

"Lick!" he ordered again, mock demanding.

Loki knew from Thor's expression that a wrestling match would ensue if he tried to remove the hand from his mouth, so he rolled his eyes, opened his mouth and licked, aiming to tickle Thor's palm more than comply.

"_More_."

Loki grinned underneath the Thunderer's palm, grasped his wrist with both his hands, the better to cover as much of it as possible with hot wet lashes of his tongue. Loki started getting into it, sucking and licking Thor's whole hand, his fingers, one by one and together in twos and threes.  
  
Thor's expression became even more heated and he gently pulled his hand away. "Enough. Too much. You distract me, sorcerer."

Loki glared at him. "Make up your mind!"

Thor laughed. "I do enjoy displeasing you, Loki. Your angry eyes make me want to do terrible, wonderful things to you."

Loki softened, and lay back. "Hurry up and do them to me, then."

Loki closed his eyes while Thor slipped his hand over Loki's half-hard cock. He just left it there, cupping, while his tongue travelled around Loki's pelvis; the line down his stomach, the crease of his hips, the insides of his thighs. Thor's slightly shifting weight as he moved his tongue around Loki's pelvis made Loki's cock twitch beneath his hand, warm and large and wet. Loki refused to buck, but he trembled with the effort. 

The wetness on Thor's hand was cooling, and combined with the night breeze and Thor's own body heat always running hot, he started circling the head of Loki's cock with his warm, increasingly cool-tipped thumb. Loki still kept enough control to remain passive even as the delicate pressure increased and cool-hot sensations built from the delicious, teasing, fluttering digit.

Without warning, Thor's hot sucking mouth replaced the thumb and all thought fled as Loki groaned and thrust upwards. He felt the hum of Thor's slightly choked laugh and gasped, his world only the sensation of pleasure being drawn from him, the wet sucking heat simply a part of him. Loki stilled himself and allowed himself to be teased and tormented for he could not judge how long.

As he chased his climax, he opened his eyes and saw the handsome face of his love watching his own in its pleasure, and the love and desire that Loki saw in those blue eyes tipped him over. Loki cried out Thor's name as Thor allowed Loki's cock to slide out of his mouth, wrapping his fist around it as it pulsed and pumped Loki's seed onto his own chest and Loki's stomach.

Loki fell back on the pillows, utterly blank of mind and blissful in body, and he felt Thor curl around him, whispering affections. He tried to stay awake, but the waves of pleasure had taken all his energy with him, and he found he could not fight his eyes closing as he gently but inexorably fell into a velvet darkness, the comfortable weight of his love accompanying him.

Loki woke, a sheet covering him from the waist, which had been cleaned of his seed, and Thor again wrapped possessively around him, his erection pressing urgently against Loki's hip. Judging by the moon and the dark sky, it was still late in the night or very early morning. Thor had remained awake; Loki could feel it.

Loki shifted slightly into him, pulling the arm around his waist closer to him for a moment and then relaxing.

Loki murmured, "I did not mean to abandon you to sleep before you had your pleasure of me. Selfish. I apologise."

He could feel Thor smile into his shoulder. "I rarely see you in your slumber, sorcerer. You usually fall asleep after I do, and rise before me too. I would have been satisfied with that tonight if you slept through til morning."

Loki sighed contentedly. "Your cock says differently. Allow me to be more selfish and demand some of its attentions, and yours."

Thor sat up to look down at him, kissing his cheek. "I will have to leave you for a few moments to get oil to ease the way, and I am reluctant to leave you."

Loki smiled, oh so pleased with how this conversation was about to go. "There's no need, my prince. Allow me to assist you."

He tapped his his fingers over Thor's and a slick coated both their hands. Thor looked astonished for a moment, and then annoyed.

"Loki, you did not tell me...I should have guessed but...can you also...?"

Loki smiled a maddening smile. "I did not tell you because as I said before, seidr should not be used for ordinary tasks, or as rarely as possible at least. But really, you have a tendency to take things for granted and I did enjoy making you work for the pleasure you took from me."

He smiled at Thor's scowl. "And truly, Thor, it makes me feel loved and safe to have you prepare me. I could have allowed you to simply take me without such lengthy efforts but I adore how _involved _ you get in opening me just so."

Thor groaned and buried his head in Loki's shoulder, biting his annoyance into its juncture with Loki's neck. Loki squirmed and opened his legs, wriggling so he had one of Thor's legs between his. "As a special treat, my love, and as an apology for having neglected you just now, you will find your way already open and ready if you wish." Thor shook his head, smiling ruefully, and moved so his knees were between Loki's. He splayed his hands on either side of Loki's shoulders and leaned over him, large and protective and loving.

Thor then gently bent Loki's legs to position him properly, propping up his hips for leverage, and stroked Loki's awakening cock once, twice, three times; just enough for Loki to groan when Thor removed his hand. He moved to Loki's sac and ran his fingers teasingly over it, rolling Loki's balls between his thumb and forefinger and then down to circle his entrance, an expression of wonder and annoyance on his face as he gently thrust in one, two three fingers together, making Loki gasp.

Thor took his cock in hand and rubbed it around the slicked, relaxed opening, and then pushed in, slow and steady. The ring of muscles gave smoothly, eliciting a groan from Loki, who was felt almost drunk from the sensation of Thor all around him as well as now in him. Thor seated himself fully, and waited.

After a few moments, Loki put his hand in Thor's hair and murmured, "I am ready. You can move."

Thor hummed in response, snapped his hips once, not too much, and waited.

Loki kissed him, slow and hot. After another moment, Loki's eyes focussed a little, and he stroked Thor's face, gently thumbing his cheek and mouth. "I said you can move, Thor."

Thor smiled down at him and Loki felt Thor's cock twitch slightly inside him, and he shivered in anticipation.

Loki kissed him again, a little more urgently. But still Thor did not start to properly thrust.

Loki grew impatient, Thor had been waiting for this for some hours, had he not? Why was he not moving? This sensation of extended fullness without the push and pull he had anticipated was maddening, the lack of pressure, of being used, of being made love to, was beginning to cause him desperate want.

Loki did not know what he would do if he did not have the sensation of Thor moving inside him soon.

"What are you waiting for? Do it, Thor."

Another shallow thrust of the hips. "What, Loki? What do you want me to do?"

Loki, on the brink of frustrated fury and not caring that Thor was enjoying this, fisted a handful of blond, and growled, "Curse you, Thunderer, fuck me or fuck me not, just _move_. Do it, or take your cock out!" 

Thor laughed and said, "Since you ask so prettily, sorcerer, I shall fuck you."

He withdrew until the head of his cock was pulling at the muscles ringing his intimacy and then thrust in with a force that made Loki wail. Thor stopped moving. Loki outright pulled Thor's hair, and growled "For the love of...! AGAIN, Thunderer!" and Thor obliged, grinning. He did not stop this time, and roughly took his pleasure with Loki.

Loki kept a hand on his own cock, which was full and weeping but content to wait its turn after the attentions it had received earlier in the night. Loki waited for Thor to spill inside him before allowing himself to crest, and at the height of his orgasm he felt Thor gently pull out his flagging cock and murmur, "I love you," into his ear.

As Thor kissed him through his peak, Loki could ignore those words; it was all in the heat of the moment, after all.

The next morning, as the tide of sleep receded, Loki struggled to stay under, to stay with Thor in his dreams, as he did most mornings since the Asgardians left Jotunheim. Something was different though. Even with his eyes still closed, barely skimming consciousness, he could feel a strange quality to the morning light. In addition, there was a weight on his semi-awake form that was not the weight of an absence but that of a very real, slightly snoring, presence. 

Awareness of the previous day too came back, slowly. Snuffling noises and small lazy stretches emanating from the weight on top of him heralded the coming wakefulness of the god of thunder by Loki's side, who looked even more gilded in the early morning summer sunlight.

Loki was still not entirely sure he was not dreaming. _I am here and you are here with me and I can hardly believe it_. He decided to bask in the comfort of the bed and his love beside him, and in the sated feeling of having been thoroughly made love to, and in the sunshine, which flickered softly whenever a fat white cloud scudded past the sun.

After a short time, in which Loki drank in the small shifts in position of the Thunder laying on him and the accompanying sleepy sighs and grunts, Thor finally reached a stage that could be called wakefulness. One eye opened, closed and opened again, focussing on Loki. A bright sleepy smile followed, as Thor rearranged himself to cover more of Loki, coincidentally pinning him to the bed. "Breakfast?" "Yes," said Loki. But first...

They bathed after, and Loki heard Thor catch his breath when Loki turned away from him to enter the pool. He looked around, puzzled. Thor had been staring at the lightning-shaped scar still splayed on his back.

"You...did not remove the mark. The scar I gave you. I...thought you would have erased every last trace of me from you."

Loki did not quite know what to say. "I suppose it is part of me now. The past can't be erased." Thor did not respond for a moment. "No," he eventually said, quietly.

They washed in silence, as always. As they were dressing, Thor asked Loki again, as the Three had, to join him for the tourneys later that day. Loki agreed. He wished to see Thor in his ceremonial role as king of Asgard.

It would be a chance to see Thor's joy in a celebration of his kingdom, a chance for Loki to experience and embrace Thor's contentment in his role and status. It was clear that even in the time that had passed since Loki last saw him, Thor was growing into the crown, and becoming truly worthy. 

Loki wondered himself why he had not removed the scar. It was part of him, a reminder of the pain and the joy that the Thunderer brought to his life. A beautiful thing that initially seemed ugly. He had not even considered removing it, easy as that would be, though he no longer kept it in an attempt to curry Thor's favour, to keep his eyes focused on Loki and his feet dancing to Loki's tune. He was keeping it for himself.

And if Thor wanted him now, Loki wanted it to be for Loki's own sake and not for how he performed for and teased Thor. Though given the chance, he would so enjoy performing for and teasing Thor. Ah well.

Yesterday's events boded well for a future friendship at least. Perhaps they could even occasionally be lovers. Loki had always desired Thor, even when unwillingly in his bed. Little would change now that Loki had the freedom to choose.

Except Loki knew that Thor would marry eventually, for politics or love, and get to the business of producing heirs. Loki had made his peace with that. He had.

After they had dressed, Loki took Thor's hands in his. "Thank you for yesterday."

Thor was silent for a moment, then embraced Loki and kissed him chastely on the lips.

Thor took Loki's hand again and grasped it tightly on the short walk to his sitting room. Breakfast was another sumptuous affair, and again they ate in silence. As Loki sipped tea, and curled in his seat, he looked at Thor, really looked at him. The Thunderer was a picture of misery, if you knew him well.

Loki was not sure what to do or say. He knew he was not yet ready to speak honestly with Thor about the future, not ready to hear Thor gently explain to him why they could not share intimacies anymore of any kind. At least he knew now the loss would weigh on Thor too, if only a little. It shouldn't make him feel better, but it did.

A servant arrived to assist Thor in his dress clothes for the tourney, and offered Loki a cloak and helm also. Loki declined the colours of Asgard but with Thor's permission conjured the colours of Jotunheim in the style of a tourney celebrant. He struggled to keep his face neutral as Thor swept him out of his private quarters by the hand and escorted him to the training grounds, which had been transformed overnight into a mock battleground.

Loki could not imagine that Thor was unaware of what their appearance together would mean to his household and his people. Being seen thus with Loki was not an act of the king in private, escorting a personal companion around his home, the palace. Walking to a state event in full regalia was an act of the king in office.

This made Loki not just his companion but an official visitor, a royal guest. Loki had not expected to be hidden, necessarily, and would not have been surprised if Thor had preferred to keep Loki's presence discreet. He had certainly not expected to be acknowledged in any way, never mind as a guest of the king at a state event.

They were greeted formally by servants at a makeshift royal dais on one of the balconies overseeing the ersatz battleground. On the dais was a larger throne-like seat for the king, covered in comfortable fabrics in his colours, and smaller but plush seats on either side, two to the left and five to the right in the colours of Asgard.

The other balconies were made up in a slightly less regal fashion, and obviously occupied by those considered the great and good of the realm. Thousands of ordinary Asgardians filled the covered walkways beneath the balconies.

Thor grinned at Loki as, still hand-in-hand, they joined Frigga and Odin, Sif and the Warriors Three. They all walked out to the balcony together to roars from the crowd, Frigga and Odin standing before the two seats to the left of the tourney throne where Thor stood; Loki, Sif and the Warriors Three before the seats on the right.

Thor kissed the inside of Loki's wrist and let his hand loose, a deeply intimate gesture in such a public arena. Thor then sat, gesturing Loki to the seat beside him, and Loki waited until the others sat too, his head reeling at this display. A volley of music sounded to silence the crowd and draw all attention to the dais. Odin stood again, gave short bow to the king, and walked to the front of the balcony to address the assembled participants and audience.

Loki listened with half an ear as the Allfather and former king of Asgard welcomed the crowd and hailed the tourney participants, speaking with fond words about notable warriors in each tourney group. Loki's attention was caught by the word 'Jotunheim' and he realised that the Allfather was offering thanks to the fates for preserving the lives of their king and so many of their warriors, many of whom were present for the tourney.

To Loki's shock, the Allfather then turned to him and welcomed him by his erstwhile title, a prince of Jotunheim. To his even greater shock, his name was met with cheers, even from the assembled warriors in the centre of the battlefield whom he had fought both against and with.

"Our guest, prince Loki of Jotunheim, saviour of the king of Asgard and his army; liberator of Jotunheim; trickster, deceiver, mischief-maker; you are well come to Asgard. Citizens of Asgard, behold and display your gratitude."

Loki stared at Thor in disbelief as the crowd roared, and Thor grinned at him, waving at him to stand and accept the salute of the assembled masses. His princely training kicked in, and he stood regally for a moment, and then to everyone's astonishment including his own, he bowed to the crowd. Taking his seat, he watched dazed as Thor stepped up beside Odin, and declared the games open.

Thor sat beside him again and reached for his hand. Loki looked at him for explanation. Thor looked back with a quizzical expression.

"Did you not think the story of your tricking the tyrant king of Jotunheim into thinking the Asgardian army destroyed and your freeing of their captive king would not be told? A simplified version of events of course, but reasonably accurate nonetheless."

Loki could think of nothing to say, so he said nothing. He withdrew into his seat. Loki had no wish to be a hero to Asgard. What he had done was done out of a kind of selfishness. He looked at Thor again, who was still holding his hand and looking concerned.

"I was not expecting this. Not anything like this," Loki muttered.

Thor nodded. "Nevertheless, sorcerer. As I said, you will always be welcomed here. Not just for my sake but for the sake of almost an entire generation of Asgardians, and those who love them."

Thor kissed Loki's knuckles, and Loki gave a weak smile.

"Let's enjoy the games, Thunderer," he said, and made a show of sitting forward in interest.

Thor took him at his word, and until the early evening, they joined the people of Asgard in cheering on the doughty warriors who below them fought as bravely and as doggedly as Loki had ever seen on a real battlefield.

The victors crowned and feted, the royal family of Asgard and their companions retired for the evening. Thor excused himself and Loki for a private dinner, and they returned to his quarters and sat opposite one another. Despite his earlier good cheer, a miasma seemed to descend on Thor again as soon as they were alone.

Loki too had his limits. "Thor. I'm ready to talk, if you are."

The past days had been a beautiful fantasy. Something pure and untainted that he could treasure during the lonely times ahead. He knew it was past time to look at reality full in the face.

Thor regarded him, surprisingly hesitant. Loki was used to the Thunderer being confident and sure in all his dealings, no matter how right or wrongheaded he actually was. For a moment he thought that Thor was going to come sit beside him, but he simply shifted, appeared to change his mind and stay put.

"Loki. I should say what I hope has been evident this past day. I have missed you."

Loki said nothing.

He had already made himself far too vulnerable to the Thunderer. Besides, it was surely clear that he had missed Thor also.

When he did not reply, Thor continued.

"While we have been apart...I mean, during the last number of months, I have had time to reflect. I have realised that, no matter my intentions, I waged an unjust war on your people and your realm. I understand that there was never any victory to be had for me in Jotunheim; no matter how triumphant the outcome for Asgard, it would have been a loss for justice, for decency, for mercy. A loss for me."

Thor shifted in his seat, clearly uncomfortable.

He continued. "My actions and decisions shame me, including what I inflicted on you. Perhaps especially what I inflicted on you. All the viciousness and arrogance of my warmongering, writ strong and violently on your person. On you."

He met Loki's eyes. "I am sorry. It changes nothing, but I am sorry."

Loki broke eye contact. He could not bear to look at the pain in Thor's eyes. _I am the one who was hurt. What right does he have to be in pain?_

Loki knew he was being harsh, but he allowed himself for a moment. He was strong now, though, centred in himself, and able to be honest with himself about what had happened between them, and its aftermath. He was no longer in pain from what Thor had inflicted on him.

The pain would always be with him, he knew; he would never not have suffered at the hands of the Thunderer, but he had no wish to dwell in that suffering. If he wanted to completely reclaim himself from Thor's enslavement, he would have to let the pain go. With that, he knew, came a measure of forgiveness for its source.

Thor was silent for a few moments. "Despite everything, I still hold out hope that you can... you will eventually come to forgive me. That we will remain friends, if friends we are. And Norns help me..."

He paused again.

"I swore I would not ask, because I have not the right."

Thor looked at the ceiling, took a deep breath and looked back at Loki. "I swore I would ask from you but for the smallest thing I could, your friendship and forgiveness. And even those are impossibly huge things for you to gladly offer me in the light of all that has happened. But I am foolish and selfish, Loki, as you well know and I will foolishly and selfishly indulge myself and risk losing all."

"I am going to ask you to stay with me. Not now, and not all the time or for always, I understand your need for freedom, but I... need you. I love you."

Loki knew his face must have looked the very picture of shock. He managed to whisper, "Thor..."

Thor stood up. "Please, let me finish, Loki, _please_. I understand I can keep none of the promises I offered you. I did not free you from the bond; Laufey did, and I am grateful to him for that. I offered you all that I am and all that I have, and that is still yours for the taking as far as I can give, but...but Loki I cannot offer you all of me. I cannot join you in Jotunheim, even if I was welcome, and cannot join you if you choose to journey the Nine Realms, or beyond."

"I belong to Asgard, not to myself, or at least not entirely. But Asgard belongs to me, in trust, as her king. Stay with me, and she is yours as much as she is mine. You could come to care for her eventually. And everything she has to offer will be yours. Including me."

Loki was, as he so often was with Thor, dumbfounded. Thor stepped over to him and knelt smoothly in front of him.

"Stay with me. We could marry. I would not hold you to staying here, you could come and go as you wish, but I would know that you would come home to me, that you had made an oath to me to be by my side, that you had promised to return to me."

"_Stop_. Stop, Thor. This is...madness. This..."

"I_ know_. Loki. I like to think I have learned, changed because of my experiences, but I haven't, not really, and I will not pretend to. I will not lie to you or to myself, not anymore. I am selfish and greedy and wish to simply take what I want."

"And...and know I will accept your answer, whatever it may be, with no consequence to you, or your people. No matter whether you and I continue to be friends, or -or more, or whether you have come to say goodbye and draw a line under what we had, know that I will do my duty."

"I have every intention of protecting the Nine from Surtr to the full extent of my ability, and if it comes to the worse for Jotunheim, well, I am already making arrangements, putting in place a refuge where your people can escape, and rebuild their community here in Asgard. There will be opposition but I will make it known what we owe the Jotunn after centuries of neglect and war, and we will meet our responsibilities."

Loki took a deep breath. He no longer had words for what he was feeling. The feeling of being offered all he had dreamed of, and far more, but hovering over the sense of hope and promise was the weight of reality which could crash down and destroy it all. He reached for some kind of sanity in this sea of chaos.

He had not expected to be the one to speak sense, to speak of the realities they faced. That Thor faced.

"There are consequences, Thor. You are not unfettered as you were in the privacy of your tent during the war. As the king in peace, you have obligation to marry one who can bear you Asgardian children, you need heirs, continuity. If we were of a mind in what we wanted, how do you propose to deal with this duty of yours?"

Thor took his opportunity to grab Loki's hand in both of his. "Do you think I have not thought of this? My line does not need to be on the throne for continuity in Asgard. There are many young subjects of the crown who would one day wear it with dignity. I would appoint them successor when the time is right, Asgard has gained kings and queens thus before now. But who is to say a child of our mixed heritages would not make a fine monarch?"

"Even if you will not marry me, Loki, give no oath, make me no promises, please ...do not end this between us."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, I know. Last chapter up soon!


	33. Asgard Part 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Loki gives Thor an answer to his marriage proposal. Thor thoroughly punishes Loki for earlier crimes against Thor's royal person. Loki ugly-cries. Loki resists complete submission to the king of Asgard. All this and an epilogue too, forthcoming.

Loki looked down at his love, kneeling on the floor, pleading with him and vulnerable in a way that Loki had never expected, or wanted. _He is offering me everything_. Loki felt panic rise, and quelled it with some difficulty.

"Stand up, Thor," he said, and rose also from his seat. The raw emotion in Thor's eyes was painful to witness as he too got to his feet. Hope, fear, desperate love, _doubt_. Thor never doubted.

Loki continued, "I only ever wished for us to be equals, so let us stand together."

Thor cupped Loki's neck, and pressed their foreheads together, a gesture of yearning and intimacy. Loki placed his hands on Thor's face.

Taking a deep breath, he said, "I will not marry you, not yet, maybe never, but yes. Yes, to all the rest, at least sometimes." For a moment Thor looked as stunned as if the blunt end of an axe had hit him between the eyes.

Then a smile that was distilled sunlight was Loki's reward. "So Loki, you are saying no, but yes, but only sometimes?" Thor threw his head back in delight, laughing. "That is as Loki an answer as I ever heard. You will stay with me, you say! Sometimes at least? You will not marry me, but you will come back to me?"

Loki kissed Thor. It was a sweet kiss, one familiar but still exciting, one that held intangible promise.

Loki wanted to be sure that Thor understood. "I will stay with you sometimes, and come back to you always. For as long as you wish. I swear it."

Thor laughed again, pure delight joining the golden light that somehow always emanated from him. "You will marry me eventually, sorcerer. And sooner rather than later. I know it. Why should I not get what I want? I am a king and a god both and I will not be denied."

Loki just looked at him for a few moments, astonished, and then groaned and let his head fall forward against Thor's chest.

Thor tugged Loki out onto the balcony of Thor's private quarters, Loki splaying his hands on the railing as he tried to take in the sight of Asgard laid out before him. Thor pressed into him, large and loving, wrapping his arms around Loki's waist and interlocking his fingers just above Loki's crotch. Loki could feel the beginnings of Thor's excitement pressing against his backside and smiled as Thor pressed his whole body into him; commanding, demanding, expectant.

The day had not gone as Loki expected, in any shape or form. It was a lot to take in.

As was Asgard. The swooping spires and shining thoroughfares and bridges of the Realm Eternal stretched as far as he could see. They stood for some time, pressed together beneath the Asgardian summer sky which gently rumbled as summer storms rolled over the city, bringing along fresh rains, and after, soft breezes and sun's warmth.

It felt like he was surrounded by Thor; the man, the king and the sky god, and in truth, he knew, this was so in Asgard.

Loki decided to allow Thor a hint of Loki's own fears for the fate of their ties together when he had arrived in Asgard two days past.

He began hesitantly, "Thor. When I saw you in the training grounds the day before yesterday, when I saw the king of Asgard addressing his soldiers at peace..."

"What of it?" asked Thor in a low voice, close to his ear.

Loki took a deep breath and continued. "You were...intimidating. Overwhelming. Moreso than even when you captured me on the battlefield. I saw the imposing and formidable Odinson." He paused. "You seemed truly _Thor, _more than ever."

Loki could feel Thor smile into his hair as he spoke. "It is true. Which simply meant that I truly wanted _Loki_ more than ever."

Loki was pleased, and smiled too. "Ah you are picking up some of my silvertongue, Thunderer. It suits you." He became serious again. "You seemed far from me. I am glad you were not."

Thor murmured, "From now on there will be no distance between us except what you wish for and need, sorcerer."

Loki could feel Thor's growing insistence against his ass. "There's certainly little distance between us now, Thunderer." He was effectively pinned now against the low wall of the balcony which faced over the city. If anyone was to look closely enough at the royal balcony, they would see their king grinding against the backside of his guest.

"Mmm," mumbled Thor into Loki's hair. "Too much for my liking, yet." He spun Loki around on the balcony and kissed him, his cock now hot and hard beneath the leather of his breeches and flush against Loki's hip.

Loki broke the kiss and cocked an eyebrow. "Here, beneath the open sky and before the whole of the Realm Eternal?"

Thor grumbled. "I strongly favour the outdoors for such pursuits. And the Realm Eternal should mind its business. Fine, not here, I suppose. Inside, then."

For a moment, Loki thought Thor was going to actually sling him over Thor's shoulder to bring him indoors. Instead, he threw an arm around Loki's waist and ushered him inside.

A dinner had been laid out for them, but would have done nothing for their immediate needs and hunger for each other. Thor led Loki into his own bedchamber. Loki bit back a gasp at the sight of the royal bed and the furnishings.

In truth the royal bedchamber was not much more extravagant than those of the royal guest room that Loki and Thor had slept in together the previous night, but everything in the room appeared to carry a gravitas and dignity that had not been present elsewhere. It was as if the furnishings had somehow absorbed and acquired a sense of majesty from its occupants over the centuries.

Loki felt his body tense. _So, here I am, about to submit and be fucked by the King of Asgard in his royal bedchamber_. Disquiet began to creep up on him, a feeling that this was somehow wrong, that he was about to give too much away. He could again feel himself edge towards panic.

Loki looked at Thor for reassurance and there was the face of his love, looking at him with anticipation that was beginning to fade into concern. And then impatience.

"Loki," Thor said sternly, both hands now on Loki's shoulders. "It is me. It is just us, and we are here together. This is yours for the taking, as am I. The king of Asgard is _yours for the taking_. If this is not for you now, let us leave together and go anywhere you choose, or not. We can do anything, or nothing, go anywhere or nowhere, as long as we are willingly together."

Loki could feel Thor's gaze on him, knowing that Thor truly saw him. Loki calmed himself. Thor's pragmatism and understanding was enough for him to pull himself together. It did not alter the feeling of dread, but he took a deep breath to fortify himself and knew the dread would not rule him.

He smiled, and said a little shakily, "If I am not behaving as you wish in the royal bedchamber, my prince, feel free to try to correct me."

Thor raised his hand from Loki's shoulder to caress his face, and then cupped Loki's jaw, firmly. "As you command, my love."

With another of those unexpected turns of speed that Thor could display when truly motivated, Loki found himself practically flying through the air to land on the large bed, with an 'ooof' as he tried to right himself and sit upright. A shudder of arousal shot through him, distracting him from his fears, as he sensed that physical control of his body was about to be snatched from him by a suddenly predatory Thor.

Thor stood near the foot of the bed, one hand still stretched in Loki's direction, his usually lazy strength showing itself as now dynamic and unstoppable and not to be denied, his excitement at Loki's willingness to play straining his breeches at the crotch. Loki genuinely did not know what Thor would do next, and he feared and thrilled at the Thunderer's coming physical dominance of him. 

With that, Thor descended on him, and Loki found himself with his arms pinned above his head as he struggled to get traction on the blankets beneath him with any part of his body. Thor straddled him and Loki's efforts turned to rolling him off.

Thor's physical presence dominated his world; Thor's size, his sheer scale overwhelming when seen up close and and when being used to command and subjugate; his weight pressing Loki to the mattress; his blue eyes claiming Loki; the pleased grunt from him as he made certain of Loki's helplessness; the strong warm grip of his hand on Loki's wrists. The scent of him, clean musky sweat, and his absolute beauty made Loki want to lick him, taste his skin, his mouth, his chest, anywhere Loki could possibly reach. But Loki was pinned like a butterfly no matter how he squirmed.

Thor's free hand roamed all over Loki's body possessively, passing over his breeches at the crotch and thighs with feather-light strokes, designed to tease and torment. Loki felt as if Thor was playing him like a musical instrument, drawing pangs of arousal from Loki's body.

Submitting to the king of Asgard, was he? Loki decided to give Thor his all, a proper fight. Thor would be reminded of his worth as a warrior. Loki knew he had not a hope of defeating Thor in such a contest, especially with Thor having the advantage of leverage, but he was neither weak nor unskilled and Thor would find him no easy prize this night.

He aimed a knee to exactly a point in Thor's ribs where it would wind him and cause him intense but harmless pain, and felt Thor gasp in surprise as it connected. However, he pinned Loki's wrists still.

"Loki, what the..."

Loki grinned a mad grin. "Why should I be the only one to sport bruises from our games, Thunderer?"

Before Thor could react, Loki wrapped his legs around Thor's waist and attempted to pull him off the balance of his knees to try to force Thor to release his wrists. Thor simply allowed his centre of balance to shift so he landed awkwardly on Loki, still holding Loki's wrists in one hand. He grinned at Loki and reached out his free hand to...yes, to_ call Mjolnir._

Before Loki realised it, he was asking in a pleading voice, "What do you think you are _doing_?"

Thor kneeled up again, hovering over Loki with a look of almost pity on his face. Loki had gone as still as a small wood creature playing dead in the face of a powerful predator. Thor had one hand holding Loki's wrists pinioned yet over his head and wielded Mjolnir in the other, looking every inch the Thunderer that haunted Loki's waking nightmares not so long before.

"I am giving you what you need, my love, if you consent."

Loki did not know what he meant by need, but nodded. He could deny Thor at any time, he knew this. He also knew he would not. He looked at Thor in terror and awe and did not resist when he was flipped on his belly and Mjolnir was lowered on his hands and wrists. She was not heavy, but as always utterly immovable.

Thor pressed Loki's legs to the bed. He was covered by the Thunderer's heavy form, large and in its way as immovable as Mjolnir, which still pinned Loki's wrists as he was splayed facedown on the bed.

Thor kissed Loki's cheek with affection, and spoke close to his ear in a low voice.

"Loki. Are you frightened of me?"

Loki laughed a sob, but did not bury his face in the blankets as he wished. He lay with his face turned to the side in Thor's line of vision, so Thor could see exactly what Loki was feeling and thinking.

It was true, he still feared the Thunderer, and he would be a fool to not. The weight of Thor on him, large, dangerous and demanding, was the least of it. Thor was the king of Asgard, probably the most powerful being in the Nine Realms, and he wanted Loki. And, asking for his consent or not, Thor could simply take.

Thor's weight on him was the weight of Asgard and its shared, oppressive history with Jotunheim for over a millennium. Loki knew that Thor would not see it thus, would see their bedgames as their shared, personal play, but Loki could no more shake the feeling of impending violation than he could deny his feelings for Thor. He knew this disconnect was evident in the stiffness of his body and Thor was no doubt confused as to Loki's resistance, by Loki's fear.

"Loki. Do you trust me?"

Loki's eyes opened a little more widely at the question, and he stilled his mind for a moment to dwell on it. There was no question that he did not. He trusted the Thunderer with his life. With more than his life, with his self. He closed his eyes in assent, and felt Thor smile.

He felt Thor kiss the junction of his neck and shoulder, a slow kiss of appreciation, an almost innocent celebration of their physical union. Loki felt himself goose-pimple as a thrill of now gentle arousal ran through him and pooled low in his belly and between his legs. Oh. He could feel himself relax despite himself, calmed by the love and affection being poured into him from Thor.

Thor slipped his arms down around Loki's waist again, so he was hugging Loki's body against his own, and peppered kisses across his neck and shoulders. He could feel the evidence of Thor's desire for him pressed hot and hard against the back of his thigh now.

Loki sighed, knowing that Thor could feel Loki's body relax and melt into the bed, and willed his mind to follow. He felt Thor's cock hot and large grinding against him and allowed himself to cry out a gasp as Thor's mouth moved around his back.

"Loki. Will you let me take you?"

Thor reached further down and cupped Loki's cock with his large, warm, gently hand.

"Wait," whispered Loki. "Just a little while."

Thor kissed his understanding into Loki's shoulder and moved to lift Mjolnir from where it was still pinning Loki's wrists.

"No!" Loki did not raise his voice, but his urgency was clear. "If I am not at your mercy, Thunderer, do _not_ expect to fuck me. I will not submit, you understand?" Thor hesitated, and Loki could feel him grin.

Thor kissed Loki's cheek affectionately and murmured in his ear, "As you wish, my love."

Loki's mind slowed and began to become one with his body as Thor continued to run his hands roughly all over him. Once Thor judged him relaxed enough, Loki felt him begin to remove Loki's clothes. Thor's superior leverage and strength did not allow Loki enough leeway to land a proper kick, and Thor smiled a sunshine smile to see Loki ready to play. Loki felt the mass of Thor's body on his own, insistently possessive of Loki's body.

Loki _knew_ that Jotunn though he was, and slave though he had been, he was a guest, a treasured friend and more, in the Asgardian royal bedchamber. Thor's dominance of him was a shared gift, one Loki could reject at any moment and his rejection would be accepted, even in the face of Thor's hurt and disappointment. Thor would never truly hurt him, would never take away his autonomy again. Loki knew this to his core. He looked at Thor properly, truly looked at his love, and saw strength and affection, trust and respect.

He saw too that Thor had taken Loki's permission to play as rough as he liked. And as tender. Thor bent down and kissed Loki thoroughly but awkwardly because of his pinned position, but it a slow, hot, wet kiss that made the monsters in Loki's imagination flee for a few moments. In that moment, Thor was everything, Loki's whole sensory world; overwhelmingly present, there, the embodiment of that moment in time; large, dominant and reassuringly protective...

...and with that, Thor _walloped _Loki on the ass, there was no other word for it. Loki's whole body startled in shock at the impact, and he moaned when the pain bloomed hot and stinging, tears in his eyes. He gasped a laugh as Thor delivered another wallop to his other cheek, and turned his head to bury his face in the blankets to hide the pain.

"What was that _for_?" He wasn't sure if Thor could hear the question, given that Loki had cried it out breathlessly and muffled in blankets. However Thor must have been expecting it.

"Six months. Six months, Loki, and not a word. Nothing. Be grateful that I do not take it out on your skin six times, once for each month. Or dozens of times, for each day, for each cursed morning I tried to return to sleep and dream my way back to you again."

Loki made a noise of disbelief and outrage into the blankets. Neither had Thor sent a message to Utgard! _Faint chance for me to punish Thor in turn with a spanking. Especially in his own palace._

He would just have to find another way to punish Thor then. 

But not right now. Right now, his ass was almost numb but for the sting and the low pain which foretold bruising. Loki felt the telltale twitch of his cock as the rest his body caught up with events.

"And do not hide your face from me!" Thor grabbed Loki's hair and forced him to lie again with the side of his face exposed. Loki's annoyance and pained grimace was clear even from only a side view of his face, judging from Thor's laugh.

"Do not pout, Loki, you have gotten off lightly. Again. This is the last time I will go easy on you."

Loki shivered with the promise in Thor's voice. Was Thor going to fuck him now?

Not that it would be unwelcome, far from it. However, Loki felt like he had just got the tiniest taste of a morsel of something delicious which had been taken away in favour of a satisfying but mundane meal. Oh how much more delicious the main event would be with a little more spice. He decided to provoke, to see what spice it might bring.

"I don't believe you, Thunderer." Loki did not even bother to try look Thor in the eye from where he lay belly-down on the bed and pinned beneath and between Thor and Mjolnir.

Instead he decided to project all the arrogance and self-satisfaction that he knew he had done as a young prince of Jotunheim when he was feeling particularly brattish. As if he was not lying there naked with his ass simultaneously numb and burning from Thor's large, strong hands. He wondered if Thor had left handprints on him.

"You'll treat me with kid gloves no matter what I do or fail to do, because you lack the _conviction_ to properly punish me. Again and again you lose your nerve..." -at this point he turned his head enough to stare Thor directly in the eye with all the considerable insolence he could summon- "...and you fail to discipline me."

Loki smiled to himself and quailed too as he watched the disbelief and then the angered amusement rise in Thor's expression.

"A lack of conviction, is it? Lose my nerve, do I? You little..."

Thor reached for his belt and started to unbuckle it. Loki raised an eyebrow at it, with no fear evident, nor anticipation, despite truly feeling a spasm of both rush through him. _This is more like it_.

Loki was hard now, his cock beginning to demand attention, and he began to feel that delicious urgency for more roughness, more tenderness, the urgency to give up all thought and surrender to Thor's touch and tongue and cock.

Thor moved off of Loki's lower legs and kneeled up closer to his head. He closed the belt buckle again and looped it around his hand, cracking it against his other hand as he smiled down at Loki who grinned up at him and then turned his face in the blankets again to hide the flush of embarrassment and arousal on his face. With Thor no longer pinning down his lower body, Loki was able to move so he could hide his face between his forearms, another barrier between him and Thor's gaze.

"Ah Loki," Thor sounded almost sorrowful. "I told you, do _not_ hide your face from me."

Loki flinched at the sound of the belt cracking against Thor's hand again and whimpered only slightly as Thor placed a hand in his hair and forced Loki to face him again. To Loki's surprise Thor was not holding the belt in his other hand, but was fumbling with the opening of his breeches.

"Disobedient and impudent," murmured Thor as he drew out his half-hard cock. Focussed entirely on the belt and its sudden disappearance from the scene, Loki realised almost too late that Thor intended to fuck his mouth. Thor's hand moving to his jaw to force it open caught him by surprise, and Loki uttered a noise of protest before being mostly cut off by a royal cock being pushed to the back of his throat.

He gagged at the intrusion. Thor hissed and moved his hand to the back of Loki's head.

"_Teeth_, sorcerer. Be mindful, or you will be sorry."

Loki tried to glare with eyes full of outraged tears, seriously thinking about nipping Thor's cockhead at the first opportunity and to the hels with the consequences.

Thor caught something of his considerations in his expression and pulled Loki's head down further on his cock, not too roughly. "Get that look off your face and those thoughts out of your head now, Loki. You will have enough to be dealing with, I promise you."

Loki cocked another insolent eyebrow at Thor as he opened his throat as much as he could, and wiggled into a more comfortable position for them both.

Thor laughed. "Even with a mouthful of cock you cannot help but be impudent, can you?" He pulled himself back from Loki's throat, giving Loki an opportunity to draw a deep breath, and slowly pushed back in. Loki revelled in it, memories of more pleasant times in the camp sparking hot waves of pleasure low in his belly and back, moments when he had the king of Asgard's cock in his mouth and the king's desire in the palm of his hand.

"We must talk, sorcerer," Thor said, pushing in and out of Loki's mouth in a casual and controlled fashion, keeping his hand fast in Loki's hair and not allowing him any control, or opportunity to speak back. Thor was just leisurely fucking his face. "I am enjoying keeping you voiceless here, in this moment," -a growl from Loki made him gasp, and he slowly withdrew his cock so only his head remained inside Loki's sucking lips- "oh yes, keep complaining, sorcerer, it does you no good but suits me well," -he pushed back in, almost carelessly, just hitting the back of Loki's throat- "but we must talk about our games and where the limits lie."

Loki frowned in confusion. Even physically restrained and essentially gagged, even if it was by cock instead of cloth or metal, he was perfectly capable of communicating his limits to Thor now that he was no longer confined by the cuffs or by the slave-bond.

Thor withdrew his cock almost completely again and continued. "You are right, sorcerer. I do lack conviction, and have lost my nerve because I fear I will go too far." Loki attempted to jerk his mouth off of Thor's cock so he could object, reassure Thor of his trust, but Thor, to his surprise, held him firm, and pushed his head down so his throat was forced to open.

"Like now, Loki. I am sure you would like me to release you so you can argue with me -when have you ever been agreeable?- but how do I know this is not simply part of our games, and you wish me to hold you in place? I will err on the side of caution and let you loose." He released his grip on the back of Loki's head and gently withdrew his cock at the same time, then moved Mjolnir and lay down beside a panting Loki.

"I was just beginning to enjoy myself, Thunderer," Loki objected, hoarsely.

Thor kissed him gently, looked purely amused. "Ah so all of my stroking and teasing and a couple of hard slaps on your arse was doing nothing for you, sorcerer? I must have been mistaken. All those sighs and shivers and leaning into my touch and _raising your arse for more_ were very misleading. Never mind, I had my fun at least. And will make it a habit to stick my cock down your throat more often, for your pleasure of course."

Loki was frustrated. "You did not interrupt our games for nothing, I hope. I am capable of telling you when to stop." Thor smiled at him. "I interrupte for a very important thing. For both our safety and comfort, Loki. Have I ever refused your signal before? I worry I will misinterpret your genuine wish and force you to end our pleasures out of unwelcome pain or fear or discomfort. I saw your eyes just now and you did not enjoy any of the four or five seconds I held you in place. If I had continued, I know I would have a cock full of toothmarks or an ass full of burning seidr at the very least, and more than deservedly so, but I would like for us to have a way to communicate when we-when **_I_**\- am in the throes of play so you are not unhappy and I am not cursed for it."

Loki thought for a moment. "I suppose it would be like me to destroy a wing of the palace to make a point."

Thor wisely said nothing.

Loki rolled on top of Thor and looked down at him. He said thoughtfully, "It has never come up before. I have always been in control, and have never allowed a partner to play as intensely or freely as I do you. As I want you to. I want you to push, Thor, there are so many things we can explore together. It is new for me, this trust. You know I do not trust easily. And I do not know why I trust you so, nor do I need to know. I want to...to submit to you and for you to trust my submission."

Thor looked relieved. "Yes, that's is what I seek. To trust your submission. I need to know you are safe. And I need to know you feel safe. Because I know if I ever cause you to feel unsafe..."

Thor left the word 'again' unsaid. It did not need to be articulated. Loki could see the flash of horror in his eyes reflected in Thor's and he couldn't bear it, so he closed his eyes and kissed him.

"Ketch," muttered Thor against Loki's mouth.

"Ketch? What?" said Loki. The energising, enervating hot drink that the Jotunn traditionally drank before a hunt to heighten their alertness?

"Mmm,' murmured Thor, still stealing kisses from Loki. "Dreadful stuff. If you say 'ketch' I will immediately stop. "

Loki laughed. "If that is what you want, Thor. If you cross a line, I will say 'ketch' instead of setting your hair alight. Or make it appear directly on your tongue."

Thor shuddered theatrically.

"And if you cannot speak, you will tap me three times. Agreed?"

"Agreed, Thor. I agree to your terms. Now, please, by the Norns and the Nine...finish what you started, my prince," Loki said, breathily.

He felt Thor's hands on him tighten, felt muscles tauten and flex in those golden arms as Loki was lifted easily off Thor and placed back on the bed on his back. Loki went limp and waited for Thor to decide how he wanted him. Thor growled deep in his throat, still with his breeches opened and gathered around his knees, angry fat red cock hanging between his legs, threatening and enticing at the same time.

Thor caged Loki with his arms, blond locks curling down and framing both their faces. Loki only had eyes for Thor anyway. A platoon of Einherjar could have entered, drilled and paraded around the room and Loki would have paid them no mind.

"Kneel, Loki. Hands and knees."

Loki frowned, but did so.

"Good. You know how to be obedient sometimes."

Loki tried to throw Thor a glare at this, but Thor had moved behind Loki with a laugh, pulling up and re-lace his breeches. The fluttering, hot, wet sensation of Thor's tongue against his entrance made him shudder and his cock weep, and after a moment, he felt like his thighs were beginning to melt. A pool of sensation began to gather in his lower back, his balls, his belly at Thor's touch. The pool expanded and radiated outwards so his lower body twitched at the hips and spasmed in a not-orgasm.

Loki knew it was not just the deeply intimate act of his partner tonguing the most private and most hidden part of his body, it was a burst of deep pleasure at his helplessness, his submission, his yielding of his power to his love, his master and his equal, all of which was contained in his large, kind, brutish, oaf of a prince. _My prince. _

Thor withdrew and tilted his head to look at the pleasure and softness on his face. He must have seen something of depth of his pleasures in Loki's eyes, too. "Before I lose you entirely, Loki, know that you still have not been punished for earlier transgressions. Kneel back now. Knees only. Hands on your thighs."

Loki jerked out of his reverie in surprise. He had been punished, had he not? Perhaps not to the extent Thor thought he deserved but he had taken the brief spanking with only the smallest complaint and had accepted being _fucked in the face_ with none at all. Almost none. Well, his mouth had been full at the time. What did Thor mean, earlier transgressions?

Unthinking, he obeyed Thor's order and was suddenly distracted by the sight and feel of Thor kneeling in front of him now and placing his mouth hot and wet and tight around the head of Loki's cock, his hand warm and slick from oil as he sucked and fisted it for a few, far too few, seconds.

Loki could not help the groan that escaped him and resisted the urge to place his hands in Thor's hair to guide him. Thor stopped sucking but kept pumping as he looked Loki in the eye and continued conversationally.

"I owe you at least a dozen strikes for several outrages against my person carried out by you in Utgard, Loki. Don't tell me you had forgotten."

Loki stiffened in shock as Thor kissed him deeply and then moved his mouth close to Loki's ear.

He felt hot breath as Thor whispered "_Because I have not_."

Loki almost came in Thor's hand there and then, but Thor had anticipated this and moved his hand to the base of Loki's cock and used a ring of large, thick fingers to hold Loki's climax back. Loki was panting, helpless, sitting back on his knees in front of Thor who was also on his knees, but it complete control of Loki.

Thor saw Loki's hands clenching and unclenching on his thighs and kissed Loki's forehead. "Good boy."

Loki angered at the condescension and managed a hiss at Thor, which won him a laugh and a stroke along his cock, and Thor began to use his hand to pleasure Loki again.

Loki was confused by the warring instincts in his head, his gut, his cock. Ohh, his cock, Thor's hand, his beautiful kind hand...so much kinder in this than in what was to come, Loki knew. His head told him to argue the toss with Thor, that his transgressions were imaginary or simply not for Thor to punish (that conversation would go well, he could tell, as his backside stung faintly still from Thor's earlier blows), while his gut told him that he should fight back, and his cock was telling him to shut up and nod in agreement as long as it led to Thor continuing to handle him with skill and dedication and affection.

He was whimpering and about to start calling Thor's name in an attempt to persuade him to allow Loki enough of his hand's wonderful attentions to bring Loki to a peak when Loki felt Thor's free hand move to his balls. He massaged them teasingly in rhythm with the hand stroking Loki's cock for a moment, causing Loki to tilt his head back into the bed and thrust into Thor's hands with desperation. _Don't forget your punishment_, a little voice that sounded like Thor whispered in his head.

"Relax, Loki, easy," murmured Thor in what Loki knew to be a deceptively gentle voice.

Loki opened his eyes and saw Thor looking at him carefully. Loki felt before he saw Thor's hand twist his sac gently, testing, while still pumping his cock. Loki groaned more from the surprise than the mild pain caused, and gasped as Thor allowed his balls to settle back their customary position as he started to gently massage and tease them again in rhythm with his pumping of Loki's cock.

After a few moments of Loki trying not to cant into Thor's hands, Thor again gently twisted Loki's balls and held them for a painful pleasurable moment while lowering his head and sucking the head of Loki's cock. He allowed Loki's balls to settle back, keeping a gentle but firm grip on them as he pulled his head off Loki's cock, clearly enjoying Loki's now hitching breaths as his body tried to understand the combination of pleasure and pain that Thor was inflicting on him.

The sweet ache was too strange for Loki to fully process but his body began to understand what it wanted and as Thor continued to tease and torture him, Loki found himself being drawn closer and closer to his peak, his hands digging into his thighs as he struggled not to demand, to beg.

The ache worsened and sweetened as his balls began to draw up and he began to race towards the edge when Thor once again placed his fingers in a ring around the base of Loki's cock and halted his gallop towards completion. Thor said "We may come back to this later. Time for your punishment, Loki. Thirteen strokes I believe we left it at."

Loki almost howled with frustration as he descended from the edge of his peak and glared at a smug and highly amused Thor who had one hand around the base of Loki's straining, painfully disappointed cock and whose other hand was, oh, holding his looped belt.

Loki couldn't bring himself to care right then and spat "Later? You...!" at Thor, which only caused the smile in Thor's eyes and on his face to shine brighter.

"You what, Loki? Spit it out, now."

Loki was panting and utterly frustrated. "You bastard," he whispered, and tried to move away from the bed, from Thor, before Thor decided to respond.

"Bastard, is it? Insulting the king of Asgard in the royal bedchamber? Disrespectful, Loki. That's, oh, two more strokes. I believe that makes fifteen in total."

Thor was delighting in this. He reached over and grabbed Loki before Loki could fall off the bed in his attempt to crawl away.

"No king of mine," gritted Loki. "Get off me, Thunderer."

He struggled but Thor restrained him easily, and Loki began to feel delicious tendrils of fear creep back, making him quail inside just enough to allow him enjoy Thor's easy control of him.

"No king of yours," Thor agreed, as he had that first time they had met. He manhandled Loki back onto all fours, grabbed his hair and delivered a sharp slap to his backside. "Never your king. Your master, though." Loki watched him, mesmerised, every part of Loki alight at the Thunderer's verbal claiming of him.

Thor forced Loki's head down so he was leaning on his forearms with his head resting on his hands.

Loki made a pained noise at the roughness and growled, "Neither my master, Thunderer. Punishing me for perceived transgressions does not make you so."

Thor let go of him, and Loki stilled in an attempt to avoid further rough treatment as he saw Thor handling the belt again.

"'Perceived', is it? Denials will only make it worse. Asking for forgiveness might be the wiser path to walk, Loki. Admit your misdeeds and ask for forgiveness."

He pulled at Loki's hair roughly, forcing Loki to look at his cheerful, sunny smile.

"I might mitigate some of your punishment if you are convincing. Fifteen strokes, Loki. Would you like to reduce that to a more... manageable number?"

Loki hesitated, and nodded slowly, reluctantly, loathe to be seen to ask for mercy.

The Thunderer smiled, and slapped the belt into his hand once more. "Stay as you are on the bed, then, on your hands and knees. Better make your arse an easy target, Loki."

Loki made a show of reluctantly arranging his position to show his backside to its best advantage.

As he did so, he asked in a small voice, "Thor? Fifteen _is_ a lot, with the arm of the king of Asgard behind the blows. You will take that into account, will you not?" In truth, he was reluctant. Pain was a thrill, a sensation that when added to pleasure and trust led to heights of true ecstasy, but it was the submission that Loki really craved. Pain was welcome, but not to be welcomed too eagerly.

"Oh Loki. I will only give you what you deserve, and maybe a little more." Loki flinched at the amusement and anticipation in Thor's voice, and felt anticipation rise in his own belly, his cock and in his slightly aching balls.

"That's not what I asked," Loki muttered more or less to himself.

Thor was by his side immediately, cupping his cheek and said in a reassuring voice, "I told you Loki, I will mitigate the number if you ask for forgiveness. It depends of course how convincingly you do so. "

Loki looked at him distrustfully as Thor stared most sincerely into his eyes. Thor kissed him quickly and greedily, tongue invading Loki's mouth and taking, and was gone again.

A feeling of unreality descended on Loki as he tried to stay present for the first of the blows. He was less likely to shame himself if he was properly prepared to receive them. He heard Thor settle behind him.

"Have you anything to say to me, Loki?"

Loki refused to deign with an answer, and took a deep breath. Before he had exhaled, he felt the swish of the leather, then the slap of it against his skin, and then a moment later, the blooming pain across his backside. He grunted only a little. It was fine. Manageable.

"That's one." Thor's voice behind him was searching, looking for signs of more reaction. "Have you anything to say, Loki?"

Loki remained silent. He knew he was breathing harshly, but barely noticeably so. He felt Thor gird himself again.

The second blow drove a gasp from Loki. It was slightly below the first, and closer to his thighs. Loki was not sure if that's why the stinging heat was faster coming and sharper. He was fine though. This was fine.

"That's two." Thor squeezed an ass cheek slightly viciously and Loki could hear the smile in his voice. "Still nothing to say, my love? Better now than later, surely?"

Loki gritted his teeth. His heart was pounding now and he was beginning to fear the landing of the next blow, his ass already tingling in anticipation alongside the burning pain of the first two blows. He didn't hear Thor move, so the third blow landed unexpectedly and hotly across his cheeks, crossing the first stripe in part by the feeling of agony that was beginning to bloom there. He let out an involuntary sob and realised his eyes were beginning to stream.

"Three. Come now, Loki. Why be stubborn? You know what I want to hear. Once I have deemed that you have asked forgiveness prettily enough, I will stop, and then I will fuck you, and after that will no doubt be too worn out to abuse you further. It's your best case scenario here, my love. Talk to me."

Loki shook his head and growled a dismissal, and Thor smiled and without giving Loki a moment to prepare himself, struck two vicious blows across Loki's ass, one immediately following the other, and Loki's howl of surprise and pain almost drowned out Thor's "That's four, and five. Only ten more to go, Loki."

Loki's instincts were urging him to strike back, to run. Loki though knew that Thor would regard this as sport and use it to add a few blows to Loki's tally, because inevitably Thor would win that fight, unless Loki broke the game, which he had no intention of doing. He would not lose this game either, even if he had already lost the fight, bent over as he was accepting punishment in the hope of his poor cock getting some relief through a good fuck afterwards.

Pain erupted again, this time across the tops of his thighs. He did not cry out, but his eyes were streaming tears now and he was obviously panting with pain. "Six," said Thor, and suddenly Loki felt Thor's large hand slip between his thighs, cupping his groin, and felt as fingernails dragged lightly, threateningly, back across his balls and perineum. "Aaaa no! That is not..." What was his objection? That abusing his genitals was not fair? Loki did not think Thor was concerned with fairness.

He was right. "Loki, I will find some way to convince you to ask for forgiveness. But then you haven't even admitted your misdeeds yet. Will you?"

Loki could not answer, and lowered his upper body so he was no longer on all fours, but leaning on his forearms, head down, ass more prominent than ever.

Thor sighed. "Oh, Loki."

Loki felt him draw back the belt, and his backside and thighs almost immediately _exploded_ in pain under a flurry of _merciless_ blows.

"Seven, eight, nine," panted Thor.

Loki could not help it; he wailed and started to cry in earnest, great, heaving sobs. He was not sure if Thor was panting in arousal or exertion and could not care as his entire world was reduced to the white noise of the pain that lit his lower body. He felt himself drift away for a moment, and then back, as it subsided just enough to be bearable. He felt like he had been flayed. He was sure that Thor would not continue if there was blood, but the searing sensation battled with this knowledge as he cried.

"What is that Loki? I can't quite make out what you are saying. Is that an apology? An admission? A request for forgiveness?"

Thor's gentle hand was in his hair, smoothing it back, checking on him, Loki knew, but he would not find what he wanted from Loki, not now anyway.

"If that is how you wish for this to play out, that is well. Loki. If you are not willing to be reasonable, then I will force you to be so."

Loki shook his head, tears streaming, and Thor stilled it with his free hand yet in Loki's hair. His grip tightened and Loki braced for another blow, still sobbing, pain still searing his buttocks and thighs.

_"Ten_."

Thor delivered the tenth blow almost carelessly and so sensitised was Loki's flesh that the relatively gentle blow still hurt as if he was being horsewhipped. His legs jerked and he knew he was going to lose control over the muscles in his body soon and be splayed on Thor's bed helpless and naked, sobbing and awaiting the final blows.

"Oh Loki, you are a _mess_. Your ass is striped red, and will be black and blue soon. Your face is covered with tears."

Loki stiffened as Thor bent to lick the streaks of tears on his cheek.

"Mmm. Do I taste regret? I can't tell. Especially as _this_," he reached and palmed Loki's cock, running a thumb over its head, "is still fairly excited, sorcerer."

Loki keened at the sensation of the Thunderer's thumb flicking over his still interested cock but could only shake his head in useless denial.

Thor pulled back to best position himself for what Loki knew would be another merciless blow.

"Still nothing to say?"

Loki tensed, even knowing that it would make the pain worse, but he could not help it. He feared the blow, whimpering in anticipation and when it landed, he yelped breathlessly, took a moment to refill his lungs, and started crying anew.

"Enough," he managed to get out. "Stop."

"Hmmm," said Thor. "That was eleven." He raked his nails down Loki's agonised skin. "And those sound like orders."

He cracked the twelfth blow without warning and Loki screamed and collapsed completely on the bed. "Twelve," Thor intoned, sounding almost bored. "Three more, sorcerer, and then I get to fuck you."

"_Forgiveness,"_ Loki manages to sob. "I ask for forgiveness." He heard the note of triumph in Thor's voice, but was too far gone in the haze of pain to care. "For what, Loki?" He heard the slap of the belt in Thor's free hand and winced, causing his welts to flame even hotter.

"I ask forgiveness for my trangressions against you. Is that what you want to hear?"

Thor slapped his ass lightly with his open palm, causing Loki to keen.

"Insolence. You once called me a terrible advocate for myself, Loki. It seems we share that, in these circumstances." 

_"Thor," _Loki gasped as the man gripped his agonised asscheek with no care or gentleness. "I sincerely ask your forgiveness for all my transgressions against you. Including the pointing out of your character flaws, of which you have many."

Thor carelessly slapped Loki's ass with his free hand again, and Loki managed to hold in his grunt of pain. Thor sounded displeased.

"Too little, too late, and you dig a deeper hole for yourself, Loki. I will have to be more creative in my punishments in future. The time has passed when I would have accepted you merely admitting your misdeeds or asking forgiveness. I _warned_ you. If you want me to stop beating you, you'll have to do better than that."

Loki gaped at him in confusion, tears beginning to dry on his face. Thor was smiling, a cruel smile, fondness still in his eyes, creating a picture of delighted mischief.

"Oh Loki, you don't understand, do you? You're going to beg me, sorcerer. You're going to beg me to spare you each of the last three blows."

Loki shook his head and then yelped and buried his face in the blankets as Thor raised his hand, open-palmed, threateningly.

He slapped Loki's bare, pained backside yet again, and Loki bit back another grunt. Was he to surrender to the king of Asgard in his palace? Loki had done so in his own palace, it was true, but he had been the one in control there. Could he trust the king of Asgard to hand him back his dignity after abasing himself in the royal bed? Loki knew that he _did_ trust, but he still couldn't be sure.

Thor bent his head so his mouth was at Loki's ear and whispered sternly, coldly, "You can start begging now."

Loki steeled himself, and decided to endure.

"And, Loki?"

Loki anxiously glanced sideways at Thor's too-close face, Thor's mouth still at Loki's ear.

_"Make me believe every word."_

At this, Loki knew that he was butter in Thor's hand to be shaped as he willed. This is what he truly wanted. Thor could feel him shudder, he knew, and understood. The thrill of the command to abase himself sent hot shivers down Loki's spine and his cock and and all over his body. Loki was sure he felt a similar thrilled shudder through Thor's hand, still placed possessively on his backside.

Thor drew back the hand in which he was holding the belt to deliver another blow, the hand which was still resting on Loki's buttock gripping firmly as if to steady and help guide the belt to the exact spot on Loki's backside he intended to strike. Loki felt himself break. He could not bear another blow without at least trying to minimise the enthusiasm that Thor put into them.

"Please!" he all-but-shouted, in a desperate attempt to ward off the thirteenth strike. "Wait, stop! Thor, my prince, please - "

His plea was cut off as he howled his pain at the landing of the merciless blow on his bottom, and cringed at the delayed sting of agony wash across his ass. It was similar to an orgasm in ways, uncontrollable once in the throes, sending spasms across his body. He crying again, sobbing.

"Please Thor, please. I'm sorry. No more! I'm begging you, my love, be gentle, be -" He howled again and fought to regain his breath at the shock of the pain of another blow, the fourteenth.

He realised Thor was talking. "Oh, I seem to have lost count, Loki. What was that? I know we had reached twelve at least, had we not?"

Loki, splayed on the bed, Thor's warm hand now on the small of his back as Loki liked, keeping Loki pinned now, tried to turn his head in disbelief at this statement. That was fourteen! Thor knew damn well that he had delivered fourteen vicious blows to Loki's helpless ass. Loki realised suddenly that Thor had not actually counted off the thirteenth and fourteenth blows.

"No...no, Thor, no! You said fifteen, and I must endure only one more of those fifteen! One only! _Please_, my love_." _

He put all of the pathos he could into his voice, knowing it was choked with sobs anyway. Thor bent down and stroked his hair, gently, almost sympathetically.

"Ah, so you are begging me for one more, is that it? Just one? Alright, Loki. Keep begging, and one more is all I shall give you."

For a moment, Loki was speechless, the only sound from him were heaving, desperate sobs as he searched wildly for a way to persuade or trick or somehow otherwise convince Thor to finish with only one more. Looking up at the face of his love, he saw lust, love, amusement, curiousity and more than a hint of delight in his dilemma.

He also seemed to be weighing something, as if waiting to see if Loki understood what he wanted. 

"Thor..." he gasped out. Thor, still stroking his hair, kissed Loki on the temple, affectionately, lovingly. He brought his hand which held the belt so it lay practically under Loki's nose.

"Call me your love again, my sorcerer. See what good it does you. Beg me for the mercy you know I will give you if you ask properly."

He continued to kiss and stroke Loki's hair and face as Loki babbled his pleas, asked for the grace of his love, begged for clemency, for a kind hand. Thor's fingers stroked his hair with one hand and the belt with the other so it filled Loki's field of vision, planting soft hot wet kisses on his face and neck all the while.

Eventually he stood and shook his head regretfully, Loki getting a delicious view of Thor's straining crotch as he did so, the smell of the leather breeches mixed ever so slightly with Thor's musk was tantalising.

"Not enough, my sorcerer. I know you tried, but it was not quite enough to satisfy my royal will. Brace yourself, just three more." He raised the belt, but did not strike.

Loki quailed on the bed, and he could feel Thor's amusement. He would not surrender and end the game, he would not allow Thor to win, but nor did he want to accept Thor's punishments without resistance. Thor was not unreasonable, there had to be a way to guide his hand. What did he _want?_

Loki knew that Thor wanted for Loki to have what he wanted. He wanted to give Loki what he _needed_. He had said so. What did Loki want, need that Thor's was to offer?

Loki wanted love, affection, strength and tenderness, sex and trust and respect. He wanted to be mastered, to hand over his power to one as strong as himself so he did not have to be strong all the time, and to be given back what was his once they were done with their play. He wanted to submit, to be safe in that submission.

He _had_ submitted, had asked forgiveness, he had apologised, he had begged...here in the palace of Asgard, in the bed of the King. it had not been enough to satisfy Thor's _royal will_.

Too late to persuade Thor to leave off on a fifteenth blow, Loki realised what Thor was asking of him, what Thor wanted to give him, what Thor knew he needed. He screamed as the force of the blow hit his tortured ass and held his breath for the burst of agony that he knew would follow.

As soon as he could speak, and before Thor could raise his arm for the two further gratuitous blows he intended to inflict on Loki, Loki choked out in a sob, "Stop, please, no more, my King, no more, I beg of you."

Thor stilled. Loki was panting as he felt Thor bend down so they were face to face again. He was looking down at Loki with such an expression of tenderness that Loki almost could not look him in the eye, even blurred as his own were by tears.

"What did you say, my love?" Thor asked, almost whispered.

Loki could barely speak now. He could feel himself floating, tipping over into a state of awareness where he still knew the pain and the pleasure but they seemed separate from him, removed.

"Please, my King," he managed to mumble. "Please, no more."

Thor kissed him on the side of the mouth and on his eyelid, a cherishing gesture that led Loki to further calm.

"As you wish, my love," he said and drew a sheet over Loki to his shoulders before standing up to apparently leave the room.

Loki wanted to protest his abandonment but before he had to, Thor bent down again to kiss his temple and reassure him that he would be back in a moment.

Sure enough, he arrived back with a glass of cold water which Loki gulped down greedily, and Thor pulled back the sheet to apply some ointment to Loki's inflamed skin. Loki could barely talk but managed a "What..?"

"It will ease your pains, my love, promote healing of your bruises. I use it after combat practice when needed."

He grinned at Loki. "If only you could see yourself, sorcerer. You certainly look as if you have been through the wars."

Loki tried to scoff but had not the strength. Thor placed another cold glass of water within his reach and covered him again with the sheet. "What do you need, Loki? Some food, a warm towel, sleep?"

Loki roused himself out of his stupor enough to rise to his forearms and growl, "You promised to fuck me, Thunderer, did you not? I see the bulge in your pants, you enjoyed applying your strong arm to me as much as I did receiving it."

Thor looked at him dumbly for a moment. "You cannot be in earnest, Loki." But his hand stroked his hard cock through the leather of his breeches and his eyes roamed down Loki's body, lingering on his backside.

"In deadly earnest, Thunderer. Losing your nerve again, despite your new precautions? Honestly, such sentiment."

Thor smiled down at him. "Very well, Loki. On your head be it. Or your backside, more the point."

He grabbed some oil from beside the bed, exposed Loki to the cooling night air as he removed the sheet again, and began to work on Loki's entrance.

Loki sighed, enjoying Thor's attentions, which were not just limited to his holiest of holes.

Thor gently persuaded Loki's cock back to full hardness from its half-hard condition and paid generous attention to his still aching balls and his thighs, ghosting his fingers across the now quietly burning stripe just below the curve of Loki's inflamed ass and earning himself a yelp from Loki.

Loki lost track of time but suspected it was not at all long when Thor pulled him up, an uncooperative dead-weight now, to a kneeling position. Loki arranged himself in a way that he knew Thor could get a good position to slide inside him in one go, and Thor did not disappoint, driving a deep groan out of Loki as he pressed his cock home. He seemed determined to take, which gratified Loki. His prince, his _king_, was no longer allowing himself to be held back by some unnecessary sense of preciousness about Loki. Loki really did not mind running the risk of destroying a part of the royal palace of Asgard if this feeling of freedom and submission and of being pounded in the ass by the King of Asgard was the stake.

And pound he did. Thor was merciless, his eagerness no doubt a result of waiting and teasing and beating Loki for too long. He felt rock hard inside Loki; Loki was sure this was the hardest and biggest he had ever felt from Thor, and it was being thrust inside him fast and deep.

Loki took hold of his own hardness and began to stroke in rhythm to Thor's thrusts. His orgasm surprised him with its speed and intensity, suddenly finding himself a creature of pure sensation as he crested to the feel of Thor holding him up to use him for Thor's pleasure, of Thor rocking inside him, of his own mingled pleasure and pain.

As Loki came back to himself, Thor was simply rutting into him now, more abandoned than Loki had ever experienced him before. Loki smiled to himself. Thor's hips began to stutter, and Loki braced himself for Thor's climax, closing his eyes as he felt hot ropes of come pump into him. Each moment Loki thought Thor had finished, he shifted his angle slightly and gasped out another spasm of pleasure and seed. Finally, he was done, and they lay on the bed, Loki on his side to spare the pressure on his behind and Thor curled into his back.

After they had each regained some control of their breathing, Thor kissed Loki's shoulder and stumbled out the words, "Loki, you are...you are..."

Loki thought back to the last time, in the tents, when Thor had first had a taste of Loki's true submission, when he had allowed Thor to enjoy and come all over the scar on Loki's back that excited Thor so. "Your every fantasy, my king?"

Thor leaned up on an elbow to look down at him, and Loki tried for a sardonic smile on his face despite his true tender feelings. Thor looked down at him with a serious expression that was adoring and thoughtful in equal measure. "The measure of my dreams, Loki. You are the measure of my dreams."

Later, Thor had brought in trays of food for them to eat, had reapplied the healing ointment on Loki's bruises, and had generally fussed over Loki to an unseemly degree, talk turned to matters of state. Loki was to join Thor to speak to his advisers about preparing for Surtr's actions, whatever they may end up being, and with luck, a long time off also. He was also to join Sif and the Warriors Three on a hunt on their invitation, along with Thor.

But Loki knew he would have to return to Utgard after that. A few days of his absence may have given his opponents in the realm, of which he certainly considered King Laufey to be one, the time and courage to act, and it would be useful to see in which ways they had chosen to do so. He would be able to leave Jotunheim soon, he hoped, leave his people to govern themselves. Hopefully, the wisest of the noble families were in a position to wrest the regency from Loki by now.

Whatever was to happen in Jotunheim, Loki could not find it in himself to be concerned at that moment. He found himself drifting off to sleep, cared for and cherished and more than a little sore from the attentions of his love, his oaf of a Thunderer, his king, Thor Odinson, the ruler of Asgard, who had tamed him as much as Loki had tamed Thor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for hanging in there, those of you who have come on the (virtually) complete journey. I thank you for your patience. The epilogue will be set in Jotunheim to tidy up some stuff there. It will set up some possible future stories that are lurking in my head. 
> 
> Special thanks to everyone who took the time to comment. I appreciate your input and enjoyed the chats that developed from several of them.


	34. Epilogue: Jotunheim

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thor snuck into this epilogue despite my best efforts. 
> 
> Loki takes leave of Asgard and returns to Jotunheim. He speaks with Laufey and finds himself ready to take a plunge into the unknown. 
> 
> A fair bit of Loki angst, although only somewhat related to Thor.

Loki was wakened by the dawn chorus, feeling sore and satisfied, and sensed more rain in the skies. The weather patterns had been disrupted somewhat, probably by the effect of his presence on the Thunderer, he told himself smugly. He moved to stretch a little and realised that Thor appeared to have grown some extra limbs during the night, if the manner in which the king was wrapped around him was to be explained at all.

He made to move in earnest and was rewarded with a growl of "NO!" that appeared to rumble up from the depths of the sleeping Thunderer and into Loki's hair, neck and ear, causing him to shiver with pleasure.

"I need the privy, Thunderer," he murmured.

Thor appeared to have become one of those many-limbed sea creatures as he hugged Loki even tighter for a moment, which did not help Loki's condition, and then loosed him reluctantly.

Loki padded to the privy, and then stopped in the bathing chamber to examine his backside. It was not as colourful as he had feared and not as painful either, but if he did sit with the Asgardian council today and followed up with a hunt, as planned, it would not be doing him any favours.

Never mind, he would wear the pain with grace, if for nothing else except to annoy Thor, who would with luck feel some guilt for causing Loki discomfort outside of the bedchamber. Or perhaps he would find it amusing. It would be interesting to find out.

Returning to the room, he found the Thunderer almost fully awake, stretching and yawning and halfway ready to consider facing the day. He sat gingerly on the side of the bed, but was rolled gently back into it by Thor who did not take his sore backside into account at all.

"We have a full day ahead of us, Thor," he managed to mumble in between being thoroughly kissed, and gasped as Thor groped his left arse cheek very deliberately. Swatting at Thor uselessly, he resigned himself to a later start to the day than was ideal.

That evening, as he prepared to return to Jotunheim, Thor unfolded himself from the balcony where he had been frowning at Loki's farewells to the Warriors Three and to Sif. Once alone, he pressed something silver on a strap woven of thin leather into an Asgardian pattern into Loki's hands.

"Wear it and think of me," he said, kissing the silver as it sat in Lok's palm.

The silver was a replica of Mjolnir, almost as beautiful as the original herself. Loki could think of nothing to say and so wrapped the strap around his wrist so the silver working sat on his pulse.

Thor was still frowning. "Six months more is too long, sorcerer."

Loki nodded. "I have some things to attend to. You understand, my king. And walking between the realms is difficult, it would not do for me to travel so too often. It will be easier soon, when I can perhaps travel the Bifrost without exciting terror in Jotunheim. We will have to be patient for just some time longer."

Thor looked away, frustrated. Norns, he was a spoilt child in truth, no matter that he wore the crown and bore the spear of Asgard. He patted Mjolnir and nodded reluctantly. "A little while longer, then."

Loki rolled his eyes fondly and kissed Thor, a chaste kiss. He prepared to find the path to tread the skies of Jotunheim, and stepped away onto the branch of Yggdrasil that bore his native realm.

The stark beauty of his kingdom rolled out beneath him as he approached the palace. Loki intended to send word to the nascent Council to convene in the morning, wondering if their confidence had grown enough to take offence at the short notice. He needed to brief them on the arrangements he had made with Asgard should Surtr strike, and plant the seeds of reconciliation between the two realms if he could. He doubted there was much fertile ground yet for this. He would have to be persuasive.

Skywalking through the palace, he knew his father would be aware of his return. He had not bothered tampering with the wards his father set to sense him, understanding that Laufey would be less likely to lash out at Loki if he felt safe at least in knowing when his renegade son was in his palace. Loki would have felt the same had he been in Laufey's place.

Loki could sense the pulse of life here as he could in the land itself, growing stronger by the very day as the Casket of Winters was once again employed as the heart and the battery of his once-wilting home. There was hope now, the possibility of recovery and repair and progress. If it was allowed.

He passed through the throne room, and saw Laufey there, a handful of Council members standing before him. Deciding that lurking there would provoke nothing good, he came into the room properly and dropped the knee to his... father.

The Council members twitched a little at Loki's sudden appearance but did not seem overly worried about his presence. Good, they were unlikely to be hiding anything from him then in their conversations with the king. Laufey rose and descended the dais. He held his arms out in welcome. "Loki. I was not sure when you would return."

Loki could not in good conscience refuse his father's embrace in such circumstances, and embarrass him in his own throne room in front of his vassals, though he briefly panicked at the thought of a knife in his back. He accepted the embrace, and buried his face in his father's shoulder as Laufey bent to accommodate him. Was it weakness that led him to still wish for his father's love? He did not believe so. He would not choose to be another way, even if it would be easier.

"I am sure there is much I have missed in my absence, Laufey-King. There is much I must share with you, and our Council. Tomorrow morning, here, one hour past dawn."

He could not afford to defer to his father here, ask for royal leave as he should have, in case his father decided to refuse permission. Laufey nodded graciously anyway as if Loki had asked. He directed his visitors to inform their fellows, and dismissed them. He relaxed as they left, and looked at Loki, curiously. "You were in Asgard, then?"

"Yes, Father." Loki had nothing more to say, and so prepared to ask leave to retire.

Laufey surprised him by saying "Three days with your paramour, and you look as refreshed as if you had been visiting the Springs for a fortnight and more. I have not seen you look thus in a long time, my boy." Loki hesitated. It was an error.

Laufey continued. "Did he put you in your place in his palace, boy? Did the regal walls of the Odinson's bedchamber echo to the sounds of your pain and humiliation?"

Loki closed his eyes. This disrespect was far more painful than anything Thor had put him through. He opened his eyes to affirm that his father was correct; it was the truth after all, and Loki was not ashamed. It was none of Laufey's business, but Loki would not let his father think he was ashamed.

To his surprise, Loki saw an expression of tenderness and understanding in his father's face. Loki simply nodded, not bothering to engage with whatever game was being played. Laufey turned and walked up to his throne again, taking a seat and looking as regal as Loki had seen him.

After a few moments of silence between them, Laufey said "Did he ask you to stay?"

Loki stared at the steps of the dais, irritated. Laufey leaned forward.

"Did he beg?"

Silence.

"On his knees, Loki? Did you have the king of Asgard on his knees?"

Loki closed his eyes again, knowing Laufey could read him as a book.

"He did! The Odinson begged you on his knees. And you refused him."

Loki shook his head slowly, slightly, the tiniest denial.

"Father, with respect, you know little and understand less. It is of no concern to you or to Jotunheim."

"Pah," said Laufey. "My child has the Thunderer by his balls, do not tell me this is not of my concern."

Loki, angered now, moved to leave before he responded rashly.

"Loki. Do not be angry with me. If this is the only victory I can claim against Asgard, I do it gladly and with great satisfaction. Can you allow me this?"

Loki turned back and looked at his father, lonely and suspicious on his throne, which was crumbling around him in a way that could not be changed by the Casket of Winters or by anything else, save by Laufey choosing to be someone other than who he was.

"Father. We all act in accordance with our natures. If you can try to forgive me mine, I can try to forgive you yours." Loki heard his voice begin to crack with angry, sorrowful tears, and wished for the will for it to be otherwise. He would not cry here and now in the throne room before his father.

"My boy. There is nothing for me to forgive in you. Who made you, after all?"

It took Loki a moment to absorb this, as he tried to compose himself.

Laufey continued. "I re-iterate to you what I said to the boy-king of Asgard. You are destined for far more than my throne, or to be his thrall. He is not worthy of you, nor am I. For what it is worth, Loki, I wish you well of him."

Loki stood before his father with tears on his cheeks, wanting to believe it.

Loki thought the best way to approach the Council was to give them full-on Prince Loptr, now crown prince of Jotunheim by default and necessity, although such a person no longer existed, if he ever really had.

That morning, he had moved into his Jotunn form and dressed for the occasion, looking every inch the kilted and jewelled prince of Jotunheim that he was not. Laufey looked amused as Loki swept in; the others gathered looked taken aback, intimidated and thoughtful depending on their ambitions for the realm and her people.

Laufey had arrived early, contrary to custom which dictated that the king arrived last, and chose a seat at the right hand of the king's traditional seat at the head. Loki took the king's traditional seat on impulse, and the assembled Councillors silenced themselves and waited for him to begin.

At the end of the meeting Loki was in a fury. It had been effective at least; the Councillors were somewhat cowed by his assertion of his royal status and listened to his plan to work in conjunction with Asgard to deal with Surtr should he stir. The messy business of consensus was frustrating but it was slowly being built. His fury came from the lack of communication and common sense among the Councillors.

More than one councillor had approached him with a clumsy suggestion that he take the throne from Laufey through fair means or foul. Idiots. If they wanted a coup, they could at least be smart about it, and be united in their approach. Laufey would pick them off one by one otherwise.

Loki knew too that he would be a worse king than Laufey, although the Councillors could not possibly see that. None here knew him, not truly. He knew though that he would bend and break under the strain in a way that Laufey at least had not, not until the end anyway. It took centuries of being king of a broken realm to break Laufey's mind; Loki knew not how long the responsibility of being king of a recovering one would take to break Loki but it would be sooner rather than later. He would be a mad tyrant to make Laufey's mistakes pale.

And yet the urge to do so niggled at him. The truth was, he could accomplish so much with the power of the Casket and his own together if he took the throne too. He would become one with Jotunheim; she would become his tool, the fulfilment of his darkest and most secret ambitions.

With the Casket, the very pulse of the realm at his command, and his own domain of chaos, mischief and lies, and he would truly become a god, untrammeled by obligations or need. Jotunheim, cut off for so long from the other realms of the Nine, would become a force to be reckoned with once more. He would not even have to call on Asgard to safeguard his land, he would have no need for Thor. He would not want Thor to be involved in his kingdom, nor be there to put a brake on his ambitions for his kingdom.

This perhaps most of all was what convinced him of the dangers of King Loptr. He knew that the dark joy of power would force Thor from his heart. He could see the hordes of soldiers at his command, could see himself moving from realm to realm as his seidr and his armies rolled over everything in their path...and he could see Asgard standing against him, led by Thor, with no room for simple truth and trust between them anymore. It would be smoke and mirrors and violence and suspicion and the rancor of a bitter love.

No. He could not be king. He explained to the Council members patiently and discreetly that which they already knew and understood: to remove Laufey would inevitably have unintended consequences and in these uncertain times, change was to be avoided where necessary. And it was not necessary while Laufey co-operated with the Council. Laufey, usually well out of ear-shot and apparently deep in conversation with other members of the Council, smiled knowingly at Loki as he explained his refusal again and again to each Councillor.

He sighed as Laufey approached him at the end of the meeting and the noblewomen and men bowed and filed out.

"Well played, my young regent. It seems I live to fight for the throne another day."

"There is no fight, Father. You remain on the throne today and tomorrow and for as long as it takes to get Jotunheim back on her feet. And beyond that, I hope, if you will."

"Why have you not told them, Loki?" Laufey stared into his glass of tea as if wondering what lay in the opaque golden liquid.

"That you are the reason Surtr may threaten Jotunheim? It complicates things, Father. You know that. Best to unite before an external threat. Why have you not manipulated them into believing instead that I am responsible for Surtr's interest?"

Laufey sipped some tea. "Best to unite before an external threat," he said, looking at Loki.

Loki sagged. He sat and crossed his ankles and gestured for his father to sit too. He realised too late that it was not his place to do so, that it was the king's to dictate the how and why of any conversation. Laufey laughed before Loki could decide what to do, and sat as he was directed. They faced each other, old king and new, and considered.

Loki decided to be honest. "I tire, Father. Despite all your efforts and your hopes, I will never be the king you were."

Laufey said quietly, "I would hope not, my boy."

Loki decided to do what made him most like his father. He decided to gamble.

"Laufey. I am leaving the kingdom of Jotunheim in your hands. Will you be worthy of my trust in this?"

Loki took a deep breath as he waited for his father to make clear his trap. Laufey was no doubt going to look pityingly at Loki and as good as clap a collar on his neck and bend his will, or blind him to his seidr, or somehow banish him to a dark pocket of unreality, or a worse fate that Loki could not even conceive. Loki had opened the door to the trap himself after all, by assuring Laufey's legitimacy on the throne at the very moment when Loki should have openly deposed him.

Instead, Laufey rose from his seat only to kneel at Loki's feet and kiss his hand. "Loki-king, I will strive to be so worthy."

Loki nodded, hiding his shock well he thought, but he knew Laufey saw all the same.

Later, he contemplated returning immediately to Asgard. He knew Thor was impatient for his return, as was he himself impatient of course. But he also knew that to return to Thor's side would be to give up a chance to be with himself for a while.

Thor was prepared for Loki's absence for some time; he would forgive Loki if he was to learn that Loki twisted his words a little bit and attended to things that were entirely personal instead of his obligation and duties in Jotunheim. And if Thor was angry at Loki for his deception and selfishness, well, Loki was prepared to suffer whatever punishment Thor sought to exact.

It had been a long time since Loki had been able to simply be. For too long, he had been a warrior, a slave, a seidrweaver, a trickster, a shape-changer, a seducer, a lover. He had been Loki-prince, Loki-king, Loki of the sky, of fire, of light, of lies, of air, of mischief, of nets and boundaries, knots and edges. But now he had a chance to once more be Loki, only himself.

He took a deep breath as again the branches of Yggdrasil revealed themselves to him, each of them a path to a sky of one of the Nine Realms.

He stepped forward, free.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ta daa!
> 
> A couple of one-shots planned. Any requests, let me know. 
> 
> Thanks for reading, for the kudos and for comments. It's been so much fun.
> 
> edit: ah crap apparently I'm like 500 words shy of 100,000 total! lol


	35. A gift from Darkellaine

A gift from the wonderfully talented Darkellaine, depicting a moment in [chapter 6 ](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20988842/chapters/50148944)where Thor gives a newly bonded Loki his commands of servitude 

Check out the original on here [Darkellaine's Tumblr ](https://darkellaine.tumblr.com/image/190953195206)

Check out Darkellaine's other work, including lots of Thorki **<https://darkellaine.tumblr.com/>**


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